Originally Posted by
Ber2dca
I find Mr. Walsh's remarks quite interesting. EI at the moment codeshares with UA but also KLM.
EI doesn't actually codeshare with KLM - and, to the best of my knowledge, never has done. It is KLM that has codeshared on EI - on DUB-AMS-DUB for years, and on ORK-AMS-ORK since 2001 - but given that KLM started flying the DUB route for the first time in 50 years last Sunday, that codesharing on the DUB route is coming to an end in the coming weeks/months.
KLM are maintaining their codeshare on the ORK-AMS-ORK routes - but there was a period of several months where that codeshare appeared to be ending in June of next year.
Originally Posted by
Ber2dca
Given their relative fiscal success recently this seems to have worked out for Aer Lingus but surely even Mr. Walsh won't be able to sell that to AA as a sustainable state of affairs. AA surely must push EI eventually to take its place as a feeder for their network.
Oneworld has always been the "loosest" of the alliances, where all sorts of outside collaborations, or internal antipathies, have been tolerated. (Look at QF breaking their long-standing relationship with BA and getting into bed with EK; look at how CX is viewed coolly by most other alliance members, notably QF).
AA partners with several non-alliance carriers where it suits them; they even partner with Etihad (and last year even quietly removed all previous restrictions to mileage earning on EY for AAdvantage members) despite their public stance of being against the ME3 carriers. Despite what Wee Willy Winky may have said, AA know very well that airlines must live in the real world, not in some alliance fantasy, and do business in the real world.
You can probably expect that EI would pivot from using UA and instead use AA where possible/practical; if AA has a problem with that, then I presume they would maintain their UA and B6 codeshares as is.