Why would *A want AZ to join the club? Also *A and TATL JV (UA/AC/LH Group) are 2 different things. Do they really hope to join the JV?

 

To get their hands on the alliance joining and membership fees?

 

If they want to survive & fly lh & tatl , the first thing block ek flight mxp-jfk .
Also I hope that they join oneworld, not *A as they will always be get the step son treatment by lufthansa.

 

Well, indeed, IAG may have been a better partner than the LH group, particularly given that LH appears to be reeling in the current circumstances. Reports in recent weeks have suggested that IAG may have been sniffing around Austrian Airlines, though it's probably not a great time for IAG to be seen to be out looking to buy other airlines when Iberia is in negotiation for some form of Government support, and BA is threatening massive job cuts.

I'm not privy to the thinking behind those that decided in the above articles that AZ was somehow on its way towards Star Alliance, but I suspect that it comes from a perspective that Alitalia was already visibly moving away from its previous "partners" in AFKL and DL, and that if it were to require some kind of new "partnership", that would most likely have come in the shape of LH or the LH group.

That said, I don't really see any particular need or benefit to AZ being in any alliance. They previously were restricted by their Skyteam partners and couldn't freely add the TATL routes that they themselves wanted without the approval of their TATL JV partners - which of course meant that they would have to share these revenues. With AZ frozen out of the purported new JV (AFKLDLVS) this may not have been a restriction on AZ and they may have been free to add TATL services as they pleased, without having to consult with AFKLDL, in the manner that UX has enjoyed.

As such, neither leaving Skyteam, nor joining an alternate alliance, whether Star Alliance or oneworld, appears to be of great import to Alitalia at this juncture.

 

I don't think *A would want them. LH has their hands full managing the current crisis and why would a tie-up with AZ help them in any material way?

 

Given AZ's cockroach-like ability to survive, and with its future now assured by being nationalised, perhaps they will be taking over LH at some point this summer?

 

Senor, perhaps more like the tardigrade? Because cockroaches need some sustenance. But AZ survives without water, light, food and does so in total vacuum conditions for normal enterprises....

 

these two comments are the funniest things I've heard today...

On a serious note, I also feel that Alitalia would be a better fit in OW than in *A, given how many Europe based airlines *A already has. Given these circumstances, and LH's existing problems with OS, makes it seem less likely that LH will takeover AZ.

 

Wow! I haven't heard anything in a long time! Guess they will move over to Star or One World alliance. I haven't been on AZ yet.

It's time to change.

 

A real industrial plan to be a standalone company or the difficulty in even finding the cash to pay the dues?
the trumpeted restart of new AZ June 1st comes with BI-weekly frequencies in June to JFK, most, if not all of which, appear �sold out�...

 

any news on this? How likely do you think this is to happen?

 

I wish they joined OW but I just dont think joining alliances is top of the list when they have been struggling with existence for the past 10 years

 

Hope they don't leave SkyTeam. They have a very good product, and earnings in Flying Blue are great (200% for Business and 150% in Premium Eco).

 

If they were to leave, typically when do airlines tend to do so? Are their arrangements annual? Seasonal?