U-FLY Alliance () is a regional
airline alliance based in
the Chinese Special Administrative Region of
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...
, and made up of low-cost airlines from Hong Kong,
Mainland China
"Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territories within Greater China. ...
, and
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...
. Upon founding, it became the world's first
alliance
An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
of
low-cost carriers, formed in January 2016 between founding members
HK Express, ,
Urumqi Air, and
West Air.
All four founding airlines except HK Express are affiliated with the
HNA Group, with a focus on Hong Kong, mainland China, and Southeast Asia, but they are currently seeking new members which are not affiliated with HNA Group.
, a South Korean low-cost carrier, joined the alliance on 27 July 2016. The main founder HK Express withdrew from U-FLY Alliance after becoming a wholly-owned low-cost subsidiary of
Cathay Pacific, a
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 ...
member, and the alliance became inactive(The official website is invalid).
History
The alliance was formed for various reasons. Since China’s provinces vary in what they allow and don’t allow for airlines it is difficult for two or more airlines from different regions to merge. The alliance was formed to help smaller airlines grow larger without becoming one company in several different provinces. Another motivator for creating an alliance instead of merging is that the regions preferred to have a local airline with a local identity that can advocate for the area it is in.
U-FLY Alliance was announced on 18 January 2016 at a press conference in Hong Kong. The founding members were all part of
HNA Group, a Chinese conglomerate, until HK Express was acquired by
Cathay Pacific in 2019. However, the alliance bears no outward affiliation with the group and it is open to airlines outside of it.
["HNA Group: four airlines form U-FLY Alliance, world's first LCC grouping, showing HNA consolidation"](_blank)
''CAPA - Centre for Aviation''. 22 January 2016. Retrieved 15 February 2016.
In 2017, U-FLY Alliance partner’s capacity included over 44 million seats, touching 18 countries, 149 airports and 339 city pairs. With over 129 aircraft currently in operation.
["Global Alliance Review:Value Alliance and U-Fly Alliance"](_blank)
2 February 2018. Retrieved 18 February 2018. By 2020, the alliance's members hope to have a fleet of over 218 aircraft.
Of the 218 aircraft
Lucky Air hopes to grow to 60 aircraft,
West Air to 60,
HK Express to 50, and
Urumqi Air to 48.
Member airlines
Current members
, the following airlines are members of U-FLY Alliance:
Former members
References
External links
*
{{Airline alliances
Airline alliances
Organizations established in 2016