The Star Alliance is well on the way to being the largest alliance group. Once Varig joins in October, Star will account for $46 billion in annual revenues, 1,450 aircraft and 232,000 employees, including smaller carriers which are linked closely with the main Star players.
The American/British Airways group has the potential to be a close rival to Star, with $45 billion of revenues and slightly more employees, but remains hamstrung by regulatory and strategic uncertainties. This group has received a major boost with American's victory in the auction for Aerolineas Argentinas, which may unlock a tripartite alliance among American, BA and Iberia. However, regulatory approval of the American/BA alliance appears to be as far away as ever, and American faces an uphill struggle to gain approval for its proposed links with Aerolineas, Avianca and TAM. The Taca group is not included in this table because it does not provide total revenue figures, although they are estimated to be around $400 million.
Star may gain a significant lead by linking with the Singapore Airlines/Ansett/Air New Zealand group. Ansett and Air NZ have growing links with United, while Star wants a larger presence in Asia-Pacific. SIA has been excluded from the Delta group for this reason.
Continental's Alitalia links are growing, but its proposed Air France codeshare deal has to await the outcome of bilateral talks between the US and France.
Source: Airline Business
