Article: The 8 Former Oneworld Members that Left the Alliance

[AFF Editor]

The 8 Former Oneworld Members that Left the Alliance is an article written by AFF editorial staff:

The 8 Former Oneworld Members that Left the Alliance

In this article, we explore the fate of the eight former Oneworld airlines that have since left the alliance, including founding member Canadian Airlines. What happened to them?

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You can leave a comment or discuss this topic below.

 

[RooFlyer]

For me, the one most missed is Malev, who provided some internal-Europe connectivity for OneWorld - BA and Finnair both being on the NW edge (or, for BA, NW outside, strictly now!!) Had a magnificent service recovery from Malev once - a connection I had on them was cancelled and when I got to the service desk, I was already booked on Lufthansa (I think) and off I went.

LATAM also missed of course, especially when OW Emerald Preferente is almost essential for checking-in and boarding when using them!

 

[dajop]

For me, the one most missed is Malev, who provided some internal-Europe connectivity for OneWorld - BA and Finnair both being on the NW edge (or NW outside, strictly now!!)

Yes, Helsinki, London and Madrid are not terribly well located hubs for intra-Europe travel. It would like AA without hubs at DFW or ORD.

 

[AIRwin]

This reminds me of a where-are-they-now about yesteryear celebrities or former band members after a break up...

 

[drron]

I remember the Malev collapse well. We were in Budapest and due to fly out the next day to FRA. Fortunately they did arrange for us to fly on LH and still in J.
I liked Latam. Very convenient for South America and Easter Island.
Flew S7 twice and have never felt like experiencing it again.

 

[RooFlyer]

Flew S7 twice and have never felt like experiencing it again.

I did them once, in J ("regional J") Hong Kong to Lake Baikal - had worse - a great lounge in HKG!

 

[Berlin]

Not part of the actual discussion, I know. But “Conflict” is not the right term. There’s clearly an aggressor and a victim here and the douche with the long table is not the victim. Just sayin.

 

[sqrt()]

Before I did the trans-Siberian in '19 I flew S7 Y NRT-VVO on a 320n, and can't remember it being bad (or memorable) - just that there was some kind of sandwich option...

 

[SYD]

AB provided much needed intra Europe connections. Even if it was basically a LCC. However, one flight I had the entire front row to myself as a QF WP.

The take over of CP was a loss to the North American market. They used to provide one stop connections to multiple Canadian ports via HNL back in the day.

 

[Daver6]

You could probably add Comair to that list. Although really it was via BA they were part of OW but it's quite a loss for OW in Southern Africa.

 

[moa999]

Also be interesting to do a list of airlines fully/partially owned by oneworld members that aren't in oneworld.

Off the top of my head:
Aer Lingus, Vueling, Level, Jetstar, Jetstar Asia*, Jetstar Japan*, ZipAir, Spring Japan*
* Only part-owned

 

[AIRwin]

Also be interesting to do a list of airlines fully/partially owned by oneworld members that aren't in oneworld.

Firefly FY
Alliance QQ?
RwandAir WB?
JSX XE?

 

[Ade]

Would have been nice if Kingfisher had survived & joined the alliance. Nice for trips to India.

 

[openseat]

I must admit to having high hopes for Air Berlin with a Berlin hub. What a farce it all turned out to be.
Berlin I felt was best placed for a semi-hub in Europe, being in the centre of europe and not on the peripheries. With a new airport on the smaller side for easier connections, I thought there was a lot of promise.

 

[SeatBackForward]

Would have been nice if Kingfisher had survived & joined the alliance. Nice for trips to India.

Didn't the former owner flee the country (India) ? Still make a good beer in their namesake!

 

[Batterytraveller]

Closest I got to S7 was using their lounge in Moscow Domodedevo on a lhr-dme-hnd-syd-mel run on a cheap high SC earning JAL ticket. It was an okay lounge and I didn’t have long to wait because I spent most of my time at DME persuading a very surly security guard that I was indeed transiting and didn’t need a visa to do so. They let me through a magic door in the end.

 

[Berlin]

Both Malev and Air Berlin are a real downer, I must say. And it leaves huge gaps for traveling within Europe- detouring via Helsinki or London might be fun for the airline nerd, but it’s really not a good alternative.

LATAM is also a real shame of course but for me, the biggest glaring gap in their network is China. I’ll be going on my first ever trip to the mainland in a few weeks time and while there are endless amounts of Domestic airlines, not a single one is with OW. I suspect it’s Cathay blocking anyone trying but it’s a real gap in my eyes.

 

[elanshin]

Both Malev and Air Berlin are a real downer, I must say. And it leaves huge gaps for traveling within Europe- detouring via Helsinki or London might be fun for the airline nerd, but it’s really not a good alternative.

LATAM is also a real shame of course but for me, the biggest glaring gap in their network is China. I’ll be going on my first ever trip to the mainland in a few weeks time and while there are endless amounts of Domestic airlines, not a single one is with OW. I suspect it’s Cathay blocking anyone trying but it’s a real gap in my eyes.

There was talks of China Southern but that stopped during covid.

 

[dairyfloss]

Both Malev and Air Berlin are a real downer, I must say. And it leaves huge gaps for traveling within Europe- detouring via Helsinki or London might be fun for the airline nerd, but it’s really not a good alternative.

LATAM is also a real shame of course but for me, the biggest glaring gap in their network is China. I’ll be going on my first ever trip to the mainland in a few weeks time and while there are endless amounts of Domestic airlines, not a single one is with OW. I suspect it’s Cathay blocking anyone trying but it’s a real gap in my eyes.

Agreed - would have loved Malev to have survived, and I wonder if there might eventually be an appetite for a full service airline in Eastern Europe (excl. RU) that could replace them. Not the right time for now, of course.

My wife's parents and much of her family are spread between Transylvania, RO, and various parts of Hungary, and the connections at BUD into TGM and CLJ, complete with QF status benefits, were great! Very few decent options now to get to the west of RO, with connections out of IST on TK to CLJ probably the best in terms of quality and reliability. LH from MUC & FRA also OK, but euro business only. With QFF shackles coming off for me, hitting LTG soon, we will likely do more between SIN and Europe on SQ and TK than the OW carriers, going forwards.

Cheers,
Matt.

 

[elanshin]

Oman joining OW will also open up more options through ME again with QR having a spat with QF too.

But yes the bug holes right now seem to be south America, China and a little underserved in Eastern Europe.