SkyTeam is a global airline alliance partnering nine members – Aeroflot, Aeroméxico, Air France, Alitalia, China Southern Airlines, Czech Airlines, Delta Air Lines, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and Korean Air – and two Associate carriers – Air Europa and Kenya Airways. Issued bi-monthly, SkyTeam NewsFlash provides media with key updates and insights on alliance activities.
Strong presence in Asia
The members of SkyTeam respect the decision made by Japan Airlines to remain in the oneworld alliance. We believe that cooperation with JAL would have brought good opportunities to all parties involved.
SkyTeam already offers customers a strong presence in Asia through its existing partners such as China Southern, Korean Air and Delta Air Lines. Furthermore, we will continue to build on strengthening our network by selecting valuable new partners in the future.
Celebrating ten years of valuable growth
After some significant achievements for the SkyTeam alliance in 2009, the member airlines are ready for another exciting year. A special milestone marks the 10th anniversary of the alliance. After being founded by four partners on 22 June 2000, SkyTeam has grown to an alliance of nine members and two associate members, now offering its 384 million annual passengers a worldwide system of 13,133 daily flights covering 856 destinations in 169 countries.
SkyTeam focuses on valuable growth, for the customer and for the member airlines. The alliance continues to aim for a steady growth of members, thus creating an even better global quality and complementary network for customers. SkyTeam is actively looking at potential new partners that can join and reap the benefits from the existing global hub network. There are some regions in particular, where SkyTeam would welcome the right opportunities to strengthen its network even further to meet the demands of customers. Examples are the BRIC countries, South America and the larger Asia Pacific region. In June 2010 Vietnam Airlines and TAROM will join SkyTeam as the newest members, further reinforcing the Asian and eastern European network of the alliance.
SkyTeam wins "Best Airline Alliance" Global Traveler Award
SkyTeam has won the 2009 Global Traveler award for "Best Airline Alliance" for the fifth consecutive year. The awards were presented at a festive ceremony in New York in January. Global Traveler magazine annually conducts the reader survey to determine the best airlines and airports in the world. Readers of Global Traveler magazine are very frequent and experienced flyers, with 96 percent travelling in first or business class regularly. Nearly 26,000 readers responded to this year's survey, which covered 60 categories. The survey is conducted in subscriber copies of the magazine and online through the Global Traveler website.
"We are honored that the readers of Global Traveler have selected SkyTeam as Best Airline Alliance for the fifth consecutive time. This confirms that our premium customers continue to value the benefits of our strong global network which offers them unparalleled connectivity and seamless travel", says Fatima da Gloria de Sousa, SkyTeam's Director of Brand and Communications, who accepted the award on behalf of the alliance. "As we continue to focus on steady growth and meeting our customers' needs, we are confident that we will be back for more awards in the future."
For more information: SkyTeam Public Relations, Marisca Kensenhuis, +31 (0)20 – 3333064