Loyalty Register glossary
Airline alliance
A group of independent airlines that link their networks and let members of each loyalty program earn, redeem and use status across the group.
An airline alliance is a group of independent airlines that agree to link their networks. Each airline keeps its own ownership, brand and loyalty program, but members can earn miles on partner flights, redeem them for partner seats, and have their elite status recognized across the group. Delta Air Lines, for example, is a member of SkyTeam, and says alliance arrangements let it link its route network with other members through reciprocal codesharing and loyalty program participation, airport lounge access and cargo operations.
Updated · By Loyalty Register Editorial TeamRelated terms
What are the three major airline alliances?
There are three global alliances. Star Alliance recognizes status across 25+ airlines; Air Canada’s Aeroplan, for example, maps its own levels to Star Alliance Silver and Gold. Oneworld says its network serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. SkyTeam was founded in 2000 by Aeromexico, Air France, Delta Air Lines and Korean Air, and had 19 full member airlines as of 2024. Many airlines also keep bilateral partners outside their alliance.
What does an alliance offer loyalty members?
Three things, mainly. Reciprocal earning lets a member collect miles in their own program when flying any member airline. Reciprocal redemption lets them spend those miles on partner flights. Shared status recognition gives elite members benefits such as lounge access or priority boarding on partner flights. For members of a smaller airline, this turns a regional network into a global one.
An alliance is broader than a codeshare, where one airline sells seats under its own flight number on another’s flight. Alliance members usually codeshare too, but add shared loyalty benefits, lounges and connections.
How do airlines settle the costs between them?
When a member earns miles on a partner flight, the issuing program and the operating airline settle the cost of those miles under a bilateral agreement. When a member redeems miles for a partner seat, the issuing program pays the partner for that seat. The rates are negotiated privately and differ by partner, so the same redemption can cost the issuing program very different amounts depending on who operates the flight.
What should you check as a program manager?
Joining an alliance adds earning and redemption options that would be expensive to build alone, but the program depends on partners for part of the member experience. If a partner releases few award seats or charges high cash fees, members tend to blame their own program. Check:
- What each partner charges for award seats, compared with redemptions on your own flights.
- How much award space partners release to your members.
- Which status benefits partners actually deliver.
- Whether bilateral partnerships would serve your members better on key routes.