Theo Panagiotoulias is the CEO of Star Alliance and drives its overall strategic direction and growth. The Alliance aims to facilitate a seamless travel experience across an extensive global network, together with rewards and recognition for frequent international travellers.
Star Alliance. Star Alliance has nearly double the number of member airlines (27) as Oneworld (14). That means you can enjoy perks on a lot more airlines to even more destinations (over 1,300) than Oneworld (around 1,000). With that said, Oneworld offers double the number of U.S.-based airlines.
Airline alliances have grown over the years to form an integral part of the passenger aviation industry. Altogether, there are currently three big players in the market. These groups are oneworld, Star Alliance, and SkyTeam.
MileagePlus members who've achieved Premier Gold and above in United's elite status program receive Star Alliance Gold elite status. To earn United Premier Gold, you must earn 7,000 Premier Qualifying Points (PQPs), or you can take 16 Premier Qualifying Flights (PQFs) while earning 6,000 PQPs.
You can redeem your miles for an award ticket of any member airline — subject to availability — irrespective of the frequent flyer programme with which you earned them.
The World Airline Star Rating was introduced by Skytrax in 1999 and is a premier evaluation system grading airlines on quality. The exclusivity of the 5-Star Airline Rating is underlined by the fact that there are just ten 5-Star Airlines that are currently awarded with this coveted quality distinction.
Oneworld. Founded in 1999 by American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Qantas and Canadian Airlines (which later merged with Air Canada and subsequently joined Star Alliance), the Oneworld alliance is the smallest major airline alliance but now stands strong with 13 airlines.
The capacity is up mainly with the United States' big three airlines, compromised of American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and United Airlines. These carriers have remained busy throughout the northern hemisphere summer, with growth for the most part across the continent.
SkyTeam. Formed in the year 2000, SkyTeam Alliance operates more than 15,455 daily flights to more than 1,000 destinations. Its 19 members fly more than 670 million passengers yearly to 170-plus countries, making it the second-largest airline partnership in the world.
On April 15, 2008, Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines announced a merger agreement. The merger of the two carriers formed what was then the largest commercial airline in the world, with 786 aircraft. The Delta Air Lines brand was retained, while Northwest's brand officially ended in 2010.