SriLankan Airlines to join oneworld alliance
(Warsaw 20.6.2012) One of Asia’s fastest growing airlines, Colombo-based SriLankan Airlines, is to join the oneworld alliance towards the end of 2012. The selection of SriLankan Airlines for membership was announced recently at the IATA World Transport Summit in Beijing. This will improve Finnair's connections from Poland to SriLankan destinations such as the Maledives.
SriLankan also brings three new destinations in southern India to the oneworld network, namely Kochin, Tiruchirapallin and Thiruvanthapuram. After the airline’s accession to the alliance, the oneworld network will cover about 860 destinations in over 150 countries.
"SriLankan Airline's joining of the alliance means further growth in coverage of South Asia and strengthens the competitiveness of oneworld in a globally competitive environment," says Paavo Virkkunen, responsible for oneworld relations at Finnair. "As a result Finnair’s connections to SriLankan’s destinations, such as the Maledives, will improve and the Finnair Plus loyal customer programme will widen to include SriLankan’s network."
Membership is being sponsored by current oneworld member Cathay Pacific. SriLankan Airlines already has code share arrangements with another member-elect, Malaysia Airlines, which joins the alliance at the end of the year. It is also planning code share cooperation with existing oneworld members Royal Jordanian and S7 Airlines.
Further information:
Paavo Virkkunen, Finnair's Vice President responsible for oneworld relations,
tel. +358 9 818 8580 or Finnair Media Desk tel. +358 9 818 4020, comms@finnair.com
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Finnair is a boutique airline specialised in fast connections between Europe and Asia via Helsinki. The airline carries more than eight million passengers annually and flies to more than 65 destinations in Asia, Europe and the Americas.
