Qantas and American Airlines have received final approval for their joint business proposal. This follows on from the tentative approval granted by the use Department of Transportation in June.
Under the joint venture, Qantas and American Airlines will be permitted to co-ordinate their flights to a greater extent. In addition to codeshare arrangements, they will also be permitted to co-ordinate their scehduling.
What will change with this joint venture?
Based on announcements, we have seen to date, we can expect to look forward to the following:
- New Routes. Qantas have already flagged new services between Brisbane to Chicago and San Francisco.
- Improved Frequent Flyer earnings between American AAdvantage & Qantas Frequent Flyer. Qantas have suggested that they may be able to offer improved earnings “beyond what is possible today through oneworld”
- Other Frequent Flyer benefits: Better award availability and improved reciprocal benefits between airline,
- Co-location and joint facilities at certain airports
What’s First?
The first change we are likely to see will be:
Confirmation of the timings of the new Brisbane to Chicago and San Francisco flights, with tickets going on sale shortly afterwards
Additional codeshare services on each other’s existing international flights between Australia and the United States. It is expected that these will go on sale in the coming days.