Airline alliances are the gold standard of modern aviation. Consistency and proper integration between airlines remove much hassle from the travel experience. But formal alliances offer so much more – and not just for passengers. Let’s wind the clock back to 1997, when the concept first took flight. Hungry for new opportunities, Air Canada, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines (SAS), Thai Airways and United Airlines banded together to form Star Alliance. Dubbed “The Airline Network for Earth”, its name tips its key objective – having a broad network of destinations dotted across the map, like clusters of stars in the night sky. For the trivia buffs, Star Alliance’s logo also connects five points to create a circuit – representing those five founding airlines working together. Precious metals double as Star’s global frequent flyer tiers: Silver and Gold. Not to be outdone, American Airlines, British Airways, Canadian Airlines (later absorbed into Air Canada), Cathay Pacific and Qantas would then come together and form oneworld in 1999. Making a planetary play of its own, oneworld is symbolised by a globe-like orb, across which oneworld’s members can transport you. Oneworld’s frequent flyer tiers would also pay homage to the earth. High flyers would be identified via gemstones: Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald. A third collective emerged in 2000, which joined Aeromexico, Air France, Delta Air Lines and Korean Air. SkyTeam was what it said on the tin, championing simplicity over branding trends. Regular flyers would simply be categorised as Elite or Elite Plus. Story has more.<br/>
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Juneyao Air’s inaugural flight from Shanghai to Athens arrived at the Greek city’s airport on Tuesday, marking the start of the first direct connection between the two cities. Operated on a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, the inaugural flight, HO1657, arrived at Athens International Airport (AIA) at 08:30 am local time after a 12-hour flight from Shanghai Pudong International Airport (PVG). The flight was greeted with a “water salute”, the highest courtesy of aviation. “With the strong cooperation and support of all parties, the Shanghai-Athens route of Juneyao Air, which has taken four years to prepare, has been successfully launched,” Juneyao Air Chairman Wang Junjin said at the flight’s welcoming ceremony in Athens. The new Shanghai-Athens route of Juneyao Air will operate three times per week, every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. Flight HO1657 is scheduled to take off from Shanghai Pudong International Airport at 01:55 am and arrive at Athens International Airport at 08:55 am local time; the return flight HO1658 will take off at 13:45 pm local time and return to Shanghai Pudong at 05:05 am the next day. Welcoming Juneyao Air’s first flight to Athens, AIA Director of Communications & Marketing Ioanna Papadopoulou highlighted that in such a “strategically important market” as China, Shanghai has until now recorded the highest rates of indirect passenger traffic to Athens.<br/>
After a seven-year investigation, India's Central Bureau of Investigation has discontinued its inquiries into alleged irregularities in leasing aircraft at Air India. The probe found there was no evidence of any wrongdoing. In 2006, Air India dry-leased four B777s for five years when it was already expecting delivery of its own B777s from 2007 onwards. The extra seats at a time when the airline was already experiencing low loads created a capacity glut. Consequently, five B777s and five B737s remained on the ground between 2007 and 2009, costing the airline INR8.4b rupees (USD$101m). Investigators alleged the 2006 leases went ahead to benefit "private parties." The United Progressive Alliance was in government when the lease contracts were signed, and they were finalised by the Ministry of Civil Aviation, then under minister Praful Patel, and the National Aviation Corporation of India Limited (NACIA), an entity established after the merger of Air India and Indian Airlines. India's Supreme Court tasked the CBI to investigate the matter in 2017 after allegations surfaced that Patel had abused his position. The lease decision was taken "in conspiracy with other unknown persons on extraneous considerations" that resulted in "pecuniary benefit" to private companies and consequent "loss to the government exchequer," the initial allegations said. ch-aviation notes that the authorities have never charged Patel with any offences. <br/>