China Southern to quit SkyTeam, strengthen American partnership

China Southern Airlines plans to depart the SkyTeam airline alliance, it said on Thursday, opening the potential for the carrier to become a member of the oneworld group alongside strategic partner American Airlines. Oneworld and SkyTeam are two of three global airline alliances that provide reciprocal benefits for passengers such as lounge usage and frequent flyer points and give airlines transfer passengers from partners in a boost to revenue. Star Alliance is the third. American spent $200m on a minority stake in China Southern last year with an eye to growing in the booming Chinese travel market, but the benefits of the partnership have been stalled in part by the Chinese carrier’s presence in rival alliance SkyTeam. China Southern said it will leave SkyTeam on Jan. 1 to develop its own strategy. It said it would strengthen its partnership with American, but did not specify any plans to join oneworld. “This news presents a great opportunity for us to continue to expand our relationship with the largest airline in China,” American Airlines said. The two companies launched a reciprocal codeshare agreement earlier this year.<br/>