[Anonymous]

[LeTigre]

http://www.centreforaviation.com/news/iag-ceo-amazed-if-one-of-the-gulf-carriers-does-not-join-alliance-in-2012-152147

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/04/26/uk-iag-idUSLNE83P00M20120426

http://www.arabianbusiness.com/qatar-airways-may-be-next-target-for-oneworld-455374.html

Hi All,

Just seen these articles.

Willie Walsh seems to be trying to partner with the Gulf airlines now, Qatar he complements particularly highly.

But will charming the most volatile character in the industry, Mr Al Baker, really be so easy?

[LeTigre]

I would love it if Oman joined but the most likely candidate is Gulf Air. They are seemingly desperate for a partner but they lost almost a billion dollars last year. Ouch!

[FormerlyDoS]

I’m flying GF tonight, hope they don’t need a whip around to pay for the gas 😉

[transtraxman]

I would say that Royal Jordanian have a lot to say about any new member from the Middle East and they would not want to feel overwhelmed.
Etihad is a likely candidate as it is already a substantial shareholder of Air Berlin but….
I see as more likely that oneworld takes in Oman Air and Kuwait Airways. These are at opposite ends of the Gulf and in themselves are no threat to RJ nor IAG. They would fill in some gaps in the Middle East/Central and South Asia without taking away protagonism from IAG in many areas.

[LeTigre]

RJ could be made much stronger through a partnership with another Middle Eastern carrier. If RJ adopted some of Oman’s products then…I would travel with them far more often.

If Qatar joined Oneworld, it would become a hugely stronger alliance. They have good coverage of all continents and a planned expansion that could well transform all airlines in the alliance.

[CXDiamond]

Somehow I can’t see any Gulf carrier joining an alliance any time soon, they don’t really need one as they are ideally positioned at the commercial cross roads of Europe and Asia.

I can’t see any of the big players in Europe or Asia either jumping up and down to welcome them. Code shares to domestic destinations seem to be what it is about, not the three alliances.

[LuganoPirate]

I think the question to be asked is who needs who the most? I don’t see how QR would benefit from joining Oneworld and is doing just fine by itself.

I think BA, as well as many other carriers are more worried by QR and its aggressive business class fares than the other way round.

[LeTigre]

Willie Walsh has made statements that indicate:

-one of the Gulf airlines will join an alliance this year, since he knows it’s probably oneworld

-IAG would welcome a Gulf carrier, as long as it provided economic benefits

The thing is that competition from Gulf carriers is currently damaging to BA and the best way to remove the challenge is to endorse this business in a partnership.

http://www.thenational.ae/thenationalconversation/industry-insights/aviation/qatar-tipped-for-carrier-alliance

It appears that Willie Walsh and Mr Al Baker have fallen in love!

“Aviation analysts agreed with Mr Walsh’s predictions.

“Willie Walsh doesn’t hunt with the pack. He sees what the Gulf carriers have achieved, and he’s happy to learn from it,” said John Strickland, an aviation analyst for JLS Consulting. “As for who will sign up [to an alliance], Qatar’s Akbar Al Baker has frequently expressed his personal admiration for Willie Walsh.” “

[KSHaggag]

I would not be happy to see QR joining Oneworld..moreover ,I don t see Oneworld bringing anything tangible to QR …yep,I do endorse the vision that Gulf based carriers don t need alliances except maybe Gulf Air who is desperate to join one and have a partner ….

[CXDiamond]

I suppose it is possible that one of the gulf carriers will join an alliance, aren’t Saudia joining Skyteam? The other likely candidates are Gulf Air and Kuwait Airways.

I really can’t see what Etihad, Qatar and least of all Emirates would gain from an alliance with IAG and would imagine that IAG would lose even more than they have already.

[LuganoPirate]

If this is to believed its OW.

http://www.airliners.net/aviationforums/general_aviation/read.main/5512879/

Have a good weekend everyone.

[VintageKrug]

I was rather hoping for Oman Air.

[KSHaggag]

I can t really see what QR will bring to Oneworld !!!…they will just syphoon off BA s customers from LHR to HKG via Doha for example …Time will tell ….for us ,frequent flyers ,our task will be much easier to strive every year and make sure we keep our Gold status only with the BA Exec Club instead of doing the job twice ,once with BA and once with QR ….

[Hippocampus]

I can see Qatar joining Oneworld and Qatar entering into a joint venture with IAG for traffic traffic from IAG’s London Heathrow and Madrid hubs to Doha and points beyond not already on the IAG network (Qantas will no doubt enter into a similar joint venture for Australia traffic).

IAG gains a partner in a strategically important region and additional indirect destinations to its network.

Qatar gains a partner in the form of one of the world’s most important and influential airline groups and an airline partner in the world’s most important premium travel market to compete against Emirates (and possibly slots at Heathrow as well).

In the medium/longer term, there is the possibility of equity investments by Qatar in IAG and vice versa.

Etihad is also expected to enter into a similar joint venture with Air France KLM and could well join SkyTeam.

This has the effect of a creating a pincer movement against Lufthansa and Star Alliance which, unlike IAG, has sought to resist the Middle Eastern carriers rather than accept they are now a part of the aviation landscape. As Emirates will probably never join an alliance, Lufthansa and Star Alliance will be isolated amongst the three European airline groups without a major partner in the Middle East.

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