Etihad Airways’ equity alliance strategy, is Alitalia the next partner?

Etihad Airways (Abu Dhabi) has no intention of joining one of the traditional airline alliances. Instead it is quickly building an alliance of aligned airlines in which its has an equity share. The latest target is reportedly loss-making Alitalia (2nd) (Rome).

Alitalia, which is currently 25 percent owned by the Air France-KLM Group (Air France and KLM are code-share partners of Etihad), was rescued from bankruptcy in 2008. It was acquired by a consortium of Italian companies including bank Intesa Sanpaolo and is reportedly discussing with Etihad Airways about a possible new partnership according to this report by Reuters.

Read the full report: CLICK HERE

Meanwhile Etihad Airways is moving ahead to increase its equity in Virgin Australia Airlines (Brisbane), following recent approval by the Foreign Investment Review Board to increase from a 10 percent shareholding to 19.9 percent.

Etihad Airways equity alliance is a planned alternative to the legacy airline alliances. The Etihad equity alliance now has five members, following a deal to invest in Serbia’s national airline, Air Serbia (Belgrade).

Etihad Airways also is awaiting regulatory approval for investment in a sixth airline, India’s Jet Airways (Mumbai), which gives the equity alliance a combined total of more than 420 destinations, 500 aircraft and more than 96 million passengers each year.

In other news, Etihad Airways has announced new services for the Australia market including:

• Airbus A380 aircraft from Sydney and Melbourne to Abu Dhabi
• Construction of premium lounges at Sydney and Melbourne Airports from 2014
• Additional flights from Melbourne and Brisbane to Abu Dhabi
• Commencement of nonstop flights between Perth and Abu Dhabi

Copyright Photo: Paul Denton/AirlinersGallery.com. Painted in the special Formula 1 livery to promote the Abu Dhabi’s Grand Prix, Airbus A340-642X A6-EHJ (msn 933) climbs away from the runway at Geneva.

Etihad Airways: