FINNAIR OYJ PRESS RELEASE 25 OCTOBER 2005
IMPORTANT PARTNER
FOR FINNAIR - JAPAN AIRLINES SEEKS TO JOIN oneworld
oneworld has warmly welcomed the announcement by Japan Airlines (
JAL)
today that it is to seek membership.
JAL is the biggest carrier in the
Asia-Pacific region. Until today, Japan Airlines was the only one
among the 20 biggest international airlines in the world (IATA
members) not to have joined or sought membership of one of the three
key airline groupings. In terms of group revenues, it would become the
largest member of oneworld.
oneworld Managing Partner John McCulloch said: "Japan Airlines would
be an ideal fit with oneworld, as we have said often in the past. It
is a high class carrier, with an excellent reputation for its customer
service and management and an enviable network that complements those
of our existing members.
Finnair President and
CEO Keijo Suila said: "Finnair has been
investing significantly in the Japanese market in the past few years;
next year we will launch flights to our third destination in Japan,
Nagoya as an addition to the existing destinations Tokyo and Osaka. We
are also planning to start code-sharing with Japan Airlines on some of
its domestic routes and Finnair's European routes.
JAL's membership in
oneworld would continue to improve the service we can provide our
shared customers."
Japan Airlines was founded in 1951. It operates some 1,140 departures
and its fleet of 284 aircraft serves 206 destinations.
JAL carried
almost 60 million passengers last year. Its main hubs are Tokyo
(Narita and Haneda) and Osaka (Kansai and Itami).
JAL is a public company with its shares listed on the Tokyo stock
exchange. It reported net profits of US$281millionfor 2004, on
revenues of US$20 billion. The airline has a staff of nearly 24,000.
oneworld brings together some of the best and biggest names in the
airline business - Qantas, Iberia, Cathay Pacific,
LAN, Finnair and
Aer Lingus, besides American Airlines and British Airways, plus their
12 affiliates. Royal Jordanian is a member elect, and will start
offering the alliance's services and benefits from around the turn of
2006/2007. Hungary's Malév signed a memorandum of understanding in
May 2005 as its first step towards an invitation to join the alliance.
Finnair Plc
Communications
25.10.2005
Additional information: Finnair Media Desk tel. +358 9 818 4020,
www.oneworld.com/gallery (photos), www.jal.com/en