American Airlines’ expansion of its cooperation with Qantas Airways Ltd will build on its new international joint ventures across the Atlantic and Pacific, and allow it to carry more passengers from Australia through its biggest hub to other US cities.
AMR Corp’s American and Qantas will schedule and market flights between the US and Australia and New Zealand and share ground-handling work and other airport services, the airlines said on Friday. Qantas, Australia’s biggest airline, will add a Sydney-Dallas-Fort Worth flight and place its airline code on connecting American service to 16 new destinations in the US and Mexico, the carriers said.
The expanded cooperation builds on American’s alliances with Japan Airlines Corp and British Airways PLC that allow those carriers to jointly set schedules and fares. American and Qantas, partners in the Oneworld alliance, won’t share revenue under their relationship and can’t seek approval to jointly set fares because American doesn’t serve Australia on its own.
The changes also may help American as it competes with Delta Air Lines Inc for Australian passengers in the US. Delta and Virgin Blue Holdings Ltd, Australia’s No. 2 carrier, are seeking US Transportation Department approval for a joint venture to better coordinate flights and marketing efforts.
“American-Qantas reinforces Oneworld and beefs up against the Delta-Virgin Blue alliance,” said Robert Mann, president of aviation consultant R.W. Mann & Co in Port Washington, New York.
The alliance also “de--emphasizes traditional West Coast gateways Los Angeles and San Francisco and beefs up against United Continental” when that carrier begins to fly Boeing Co’s 787 from Houston to Pacific destinations nonstop, he said.
The American-Qantas plan needs approval from regulators, including Australia’s Competition & Consumer Commission. Some details of the expanded commercial venture haven’t been finalized and talks are continuing, Mary Frances Fagan, a spokeswoman for American, said in an interview.
Qantas’ four-times-a-week service between Sydney and Dallas-Fort Worth International will begin on May 16. The carrier will stop direct flights to San Francisco two days before that. Qantas also flies to Los Angeles and New York.
The route “is an important step for Qantas as we expand and improve our international services,” chief executive officer Alan Joyce said in a statement.
American and Qantas already share booking codes on flights across the Pacific Ocean and on connecting services.
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