Skift Take
Alaska Airlines is evolving its business as it tries to think more globally. But unlike Canada's WestJet, which went out and acquired Boeing 787s, Alaska is thinking much more prudently. That's probably the right move.
Alaska Airlines is considering joining the Oneworld marketing alliance dominated by American Airlines, British Airways, and Qantas, though likely not as a full-fledged member, its chief commercial officer told investment analysts on Tuesday.
Alaska is among the only larger North American airlines not tied to one of the three major global alliances. In the past, that has served it well, allowing it to enter marketing agreements with any airline. But after severing its ties with four major SkyTeam airlines in the past two years, including Delta Air Lines, and with eight of its 17 current agreements with Oneworld carriers, now could be the right time.
If it joins, Alaska would become the alliance's second "Oneworld Connect" member, along with Fiji Airways, which joined in June. Oneworld created this second-tier opportunity earlier this year, hoping it could help make membership more palatable to smaller regional airlines like Alaska, which generally don't like to incur the major costs of alliance membership. On a "Connect" airline, passengers with Oneworld elite status may not receive all the perks they're accustomed to, but they may receive some special treatment.
The disclosure comes as Alaska seeks to bolster its global offerings without buying wide-body aircraft or flying farther abroad than Costa Rica. It knows its core customers in Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles often fly long-haul routes, and it would prefer those customers fly Alaska’s
