US Airways and German counterpart Lufthansa are the latest airlines to agree a ‘code-sharing’ marketing partnership.
Under the deal, each airline will sell tickets on the other’s planes, while consumers on relevant flights will be able to choose which operator’s loyalty scheme is credited.
The full terms of the partnership are yet to be worked out and will in part depend on a review of the plan by the US Transportation Department.
Some routes are expected to be launched under the partnership later in 2003, though it could take a couple of years to implement them all – assuming US Airways, which escaped from bankruptcy protection only in March, makes it that far.
Code-sharing is a popular tactic among cash-strapped operators. US trio Delta Air Lines, Northwest Airlines and Continental Airlines recently won approval for a huge ten-year deal, the largest in the industry to date [WAMN: 03-Apr-03].
Data sourced from: New York Times; additional content by WARC staff
