Skyteam’s third lounge – and first in Asia – has officially opened in Sydney following a ribbon cutting ceremony.
While the airline alliance’s Sydney lounge has been operational since late December, the Skyteam airline members formally declared the facility open on Friday.
Sydney is the third Skyteam alliance lounge, following on from London Heathrow and Istanbul Ataturk airports.
Skyteam chief executive Michael Wisbrun says Sydney was the clear choice for the alliance’s first lounge in Asia.
“Australia is a key market for Skyteam,” Wisbrun said at the official opening.
Wisbrun said Skyteam, which is celebrating its 15th anniversary in 2015, was planning on having new lounges in Dubai, Beijing and Hong Kong before the end of 2015.
Sydney Airport chief executive Kerrie Mather noted seven members of the 20-strong Skyteam alliance – China Airlines, China Eastern, China Southern, Delta Air Lines, Garuda Indonesia, Korean Air and Vietnam Airlines – currently flying to Sydney offered 151 services a week to 13 destinations.
“You have a very significant presence here and I think this will provide a wonderful facility for your customers,” Mather said.
An eighth Skyteam member, Xiamen Air, was expected to launch new flights from Xiamen to Sydney by the end of 2015, according to media reports.
The lounge, which has wifi, showers and power points at every seat, is operated by Plaza Premium Lounge Management and has capacity for 140 people. There is also a “living botanical wall” that appears as passengers enter the lounge
It will eventually have a number of massage chairs, with the prospect of having masseurs in the lounge also a consideration for some point in the future.
