Air India formally joined the Star Alliance group of airlines on July 11.
The induction of the alliance’s 27th member airline adds 40 destinations and more than 400 daily flights to the alliance network.
“This is an important day for us,” Star Alliance chief executive Mark Schwab said in a statement. “We have said for many years that we needed a strong home carrier in the Indian market and by welcoming Air India to our Star Alliance family, we have achieved this goal. We know that the ‘new’ Air India is looking forward to providing the Star Alliance customer benefits to many more travellers.”
Added Rohit Nandan, Air India chairman and managing director: “Air India is proud to be a member of this prestigious airline alliance. From today, we open up a completely different world for our passengers, who can now travel to over 1,300 destinations right across the network and enjoy world-class service, better connectivity and seamless travel wherever they go.”
Star Alliance now boasts a network of 1,316 destinations in 192 countries and more than 18,500 daily flights from its member airlines.