Delta said Thursday it had acquired a 4.3% stake in joint-venture partner Korean Air’s parent company with a view toward expanding across Asia. Delta is growing internationally both through joint ventures - which allow airlines to coordinate fares and schedules while building a presence in new markets - and equity investments, which help airlines align their respective strategies. Thecarrier said it intended to increase its stake in Hanjin Kal Corp, which owns about 30% of Korean Air, to 10% over time, after receiving regulatory approval. It did not disclose how much it paid for the 4.3% stake, worth about $88m, according to current market prices. Delta’s stake purchase was intended to ensure its partner’s “stable management rights”, Korean Air said. Delta has said it sees Seoul’s Incheon International Airport, the hub of Korean Air, as a gateway for more destinations across Asia. “Long term, the partnership and the joint venture is strong in terms of size and there’s no reason to think it can’t grow substantially into the future,” Delta CEEd Bastian said at an aviation summit earlier this month in Seoul.<br/>
sky
Kenya’s government is in favour of a proposal by lawmakers to nationalise Kenya Airways after they rejected the airline’s bid to run the nation’s biggest airport. Sub-Saharan Africa’s third-largest airline, which reported a 5.95b shillings ($59m) full-year loss, has lost market share to regional rivals like Ethiopian Airlines and RwandAir. Kenya Airways is seeking ways to promote its base in the East African nation’s capital, Nairobi, as a regional hub and return to profitability, even if that means it being nationalized. The Kenyan government already owns 48.9% of the airline. The parliamentary transport committee proposed creating a government-owned holding company with four subsidiaries including the carrier and the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, according to a report tabled in parliament on Tuesday. The other two units are the state’s Kenya Airports Authority and an aviation college. The National Assembly is required to adopt the committee’s report before the government can implement it. “We support that proposal,” Transport Cabinet Secretary James Macharia said. “It’s part of the overall plan.”<br/>
Europe's largest hotel group Accor and airline Air France-KLM said they were broadening their loyalty programmes by offering a dual reward scheme to their entire global customer base. Some investors have said they see sense in tie-ups between the two companies through cooperations on loyalty programmes, after Accor dropped plans to buy a minority stake in AirFrance-KLM last July, at a time when the airline was hit by boardroom and staff unrest. Accor had said that a stake in the Franco-Dutch airline could help it compete better against travel packages offered by online rivals such as Expedia and Booking.com, but investors questioned why the hotel group would need to buy a stake in the troubled airline and said a looser tie-up was preferable. "Every time our customers travel on a flight marketed and operated by Air France and/or KLM, or stay a night at an Accor hotel, they will now simultaneously earn both Flying Blue Miles and Le Club AccorHotels Reward points," the companies said Thursday.<br/>