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| Edited By: Sindhu Bhattacharya |Source: DNA |Updated: Mar 18, 2018, 02:50 AM IST
A delay in joining the global airline grouping, Star Alliance, is costing Air India (AI) Rs1.5-2 crore a day in revenue.
Officials say the airline’s inability to offer domestic connections in important markets like the US — where AI operates direct flights to New York but not to the West Coast — have hit revenue generation significantly.
The officials are hoping the airline woauld be able to join Star Alliance by July 31, the latest deadline set by the international body.
Star Alliance has already given AI three extensions to complete all formalities over the last two years, in a scenario where some private Indian carriers are also keen to join the airline grouping.
But Air India has faced several problems on this issue, the biggest being the absence of a single code till a few months back.
Erstwhile Air India and Indian Airlines flights were earlier being operated separately on ‘AI’ and ‘IA’ codes, which meant separate ticketing, among other things.
Star Alliance had made it clear from the beginning that in order to join it, India’s national carrier will have to first get a single code and an integrated passenger service system, or PSS, which includes integrated bookings.
An airline official said an AI team will be going to Frankfurt next month to conclude negotiations on joining the Alliance.
Star Alliance had set 80 conditions before AI and most of these are now taken care of, said the official. A complete brand book is ready and plans are afoot to change the look of tickets and boarding passes, which will carry the Star Alliance logo after July.
With Star Alliance, Air India passengers will get access to 1,160 airports and 181 global destinations.
The aviation industry works across the globe on the strength of three alliances — Star Alliance, Oneworld and SkyTeam — with each having about a dozen airlines under it. These alliances offer passengers easier access to the world, but their growing power also puts them in a position to dominate unaffiliated rivals and to control prices.
