TOKYO – Japan Airlines, after declaring bankruptcy last month, appears unlikely to defect to the Sky Team alliance led by the world’s biggest carrier Delta.
US giants American and Delta Air Lines have been competing to invest in ailing JAL, which filed for bankruptcy with US$26 billion of debt.
Both airlines have circled JAL, hoping to benefit from a new US-Japan "open skies" deal to expand their reach in the lucrative Asia-Pacific aviation market.
Japanese media had previously said JAL planned to switch to the SkyTeam alliance of Delta and ditch American’s Oneworld alliance, which also includes British Airways and Qantas.
But newspapers including the Nikkei business daily, and NHK television, said JAL’s new management and the government’s Enterprise Turnaround Initiative of Japan believe the switch would be costly and risky.
The carrier feared that a switch to Delta and SkyTeam would confuse its passengers, and may not win anti-trust immunity from US authorities because it would dominate the trans-Pacific market.
A JAL spokesman said: "Nothing is decided on this issue and the reports are based on speculation."
But a Delta spokesman told AFP that the airline has no plans to drop its tie-up talks with JAL, and stressed that it was ready to cover all costs associated with JAL’s transfer from the Oneworld alliance.
