Wings Alliance was the working name of a proposed
airline alliance
An airline alliance is an aviation industry arrangement between two or more airlines agreeing to cooperate on a substantial level. Alliances may provide marketing branding to facilitate travelers making inter-airline codeshare connections within c ...
to be anchored by the American carriers
Northwest Airlines
Northwest Airlines Corp. (NWA) was a major American airline founded in 1926 and absorbed into Delta Air Lines, Inc. by a merger. The merger, approved on October 29, 2008, made Delta the largest airline in the world until the American Airlines ...
and
Continental Airlines of USA with the European flag carriers
KLM
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, legally ''Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij N.V.'' (literal translation: Royal Aviation Company Plc.), is the flag carrier airline of the Netherlands. KLM is headquartered in Amstelveen, with its hub at nearby Amste ...
of the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
and
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
's
Alitalia
Alitalia - Società Aerea Italiana S.p.A., operating as Alitalia (), was an Italian airline which was once the flag carrier and largest airline of Italy. The company had its head office in Fiumicino, Metropolitan City of Rome Capital. The ai ...
. Although these airlines cooperated with one another through
code-sharing and
frequent flyer program
A frequent-flyer program (American English) or frequent-flyer programme (British English) is a loyalty program offered by an airline.
Many airlines have frequent-flyer programs designed to encourage airline customers enrolled in the program ...
coordination, no formal association was ever announced. It was rendered superfluous in September 2004 when most of its participants joined the
SkyTeam alliance.
Northwest and KLM had begun cooperating in 1989, but the formation of the
Star Alliance
Star Alliance is the world's largest global airline alliance. Founded on 14 May 1997, its CEO is Jeffrey Goh and its headquarters is located in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. , Star Alliance is the largest of the three global alliances by passenge ...
in 1997 led by
United Airlines
United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois. and
Lufthansa represented a new direction for airline marketing. Passengers could book seamless itineraries across the coordinated schedules of member carriers, accrue and redeem frequent flyer miles in their preferred program, and enjoy reciprocal lounge access and other elite flyer privileges. In September 1998,
American Airlines
American Airlines is a major airlines of the United States, major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the world when measured ...
,
British Airways
British Airways (BA) is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in London, England, near its main hub at Heathrow Airport.
The airline is the second largest UK-based carrier, based on fleet size and passengers ...
,
Qantas
Qantas Airways Limited ( ) is the flag carrier of Australia and the country's largest airline by fleet size, international flights, and international destinations. It is the world's third-oldest airline still in operation, having been founde ...
,
Canadian Airlines International
Canadian Airlines International Ltd. (stylized as Canadi›n Airlines or Canadi‹n Airlines, or simply Canadian) was a Canadian airline that operated from 1987 until 2001. The airline was Canada's second largest airline after Air Canada, carr ...
and
Cathay Pacific announced the creation of a rival alliance,
oneworld
Oneworld (stylised as oneworld; CRS: *O) is an airline alliance founded on 1 February 1999. The alliance's stated objective is to be the first choice airline alliance for the world's frequent international travellers. Its central alliance offic ...
.
Non-aligned airlines maneuvered to form their own partnerships.
Swissair and
Sabena
The ''Societé anonyme belge d'Exploitation de la Navigation aérienne'' (French; ), better known by the acronym Sabena or SABENA, was the national airline of Belgium from 1923 to 2001, with its base at Brussels National Airport. After its ba ...
built a network around the
Qualiflyer Qualiflyer was a frequent flyer program and to some extend an airline alliance created in April 1992 by Austrian Airlines, Crossair and Swissair. When Swissair began acquiring stakes in other European airlines in 1998, Qualiflyer was extended to bec ...
program and
Air France
Air France (; formally ''Société Air France, S.A.''), stylised as AIRFRANCE, is the flag carrier of France headquartered in Tremblay-en-France. It is a subsidiary of the Air France–KLM Group and a founding member of the SkyTeam global a ...
and
Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines, Inc., typically referred to as Delta, is one of the major airlines of the United States and a legacy carrier. One of the world's oldest airlines in operation, Delta is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline, along w ...
announced a partnership that would grow into the SkyTeam alliance. Northwest and KLM, which had begun cooperating with Continental in 1998, did not immediately reorganize their tripartite relationship into a third, competing alliance; however, industry analysts widely expected the move would come in 1999. Indeed, in the spring of that year, leaders of the
labor unions representing the airlines' pilots met to coordinate negotiations. KLM had merged its cargo operations with those of Alitalia, and with Northwest extended its partnership to Alitalia effective November 1, 1999. In December, Continental received regulatory approval to partner with Alitalia, bringing membership of the nascent alliance to four.
Other airlines which had expressed interest in joining included
Malaysia Airlines
Malaysia Airlines Berhad (MAB; ms, Penerbangan Malaysia Berhad), formerly known as Malaysian Airline System (MAS; ), and branded as Malaysia Airlines, is the flag carrier airline of Malaysia and a member of the Oneworld airline alliance. (Th ...
,
Air China,
Air Europa
Air Europa Líneas Aéreas, S.A.U., branded as Air Europa, is the third-largest Spanish airline after Iberia and Vueling. The airline is headquartered in Llucmajor, Mallorca, Spain; it has its main hub at Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport ...
and
Garuda Indonesia.
Numerous disputes would prevent Wings from ever taking flight, however. As part of their partnership, Northwest had taken a stake in Continental, raising the hackles of
antitrust regulators in the
United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United Stat ...
. Across the
Atlantic
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...
KLM came to blows with Alitalia over access to the new
Malpensa International Airport
Milan Malpensa Airport is the largest international airport in northern Italy, serving Lombardy, Piedmont and Liguria, as well as the Swiss Canton of Ticino. The airport is northwest of Milan, next to the Ticino river dividing Lombardy and Pie ...
serving
Milan
Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
. KLM had contributed some $95 million to the construction of the replacement for overcrowded
Linate Airport
Milan Linate Airport is the third international airport of Milan, the second-largest city and largest urban area of Italy, behind Malpensa Airport and Orio al Serio Airport. It served 9,233,475 passengers in 2018, being the fifth busiest air ...
, but the Italian government used the project to shore up Alitalia at foreign carriers' expense, by barring them from flying into the much more convenient Linate. Alitalia left to join SkyTeam, while KLM dallied with a potential merger with
British Airways
British Airways (BA) is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in London, England, near its main hub at Heathrow Airport.
The airline is the second largest UK-based carrier, based on fleet size and passengers ...
, a oneworld carrier. Finally, the
European Commission
The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...
began its own antitrust investigation into the relationship between KLM and Northwest.
The EC investigation closed its investigation in late July 2002,
EU ends investigation into Star and Wings alliances
/ref> but momentum for forming a true alliance had been lost. The members of would-be Wings focused on bilateral agreements with smaller carriers instead. In 2003 KLM began negotiations to merge with SkyTeam carrier Air France, which was concluded in early 2004, while Continental Airlines and Northwest began negotiating their own entry. KLM, Northwest, and Continental formally joined SkyTeam in September 2004, rendering the Wings alliance officially defunct.
Possible member airlines
See also
* oneworld
Oneworld (stylised as oneworld; CRS: *O) is an airline alliance founded on 1 February 1999. The alliance's stated objective is to be the first choice airline alliance for the world's frequent international travellers. Its central alliance offic ...
* Skyteam
* Star Alliance
Star Alliance is the world's largest global airline alliance. Founded on 14 May 1997, its CEO is Jeffrey Goh and its headquarters is located in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. , Star Alliance is the largest of the three global alliances by passenge ...
* Qualiflyer Qualiflyer was a frequent flyer program and to some extend an airline alliance created in April 1992 by Austrian Airlines, Crossair and Swissair. When Swissair began acquiring stakes in other European airlines in 1998, Qualiflyer was extended to bec ...
* Atlantic Excellence
References
{{Delta Air Lines
Airline alliances
SkyTeam
Northwest Airlines