EANS-News: Air Berlin to join oneworld alliance

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Berlin (euro adhoc) - Air Berlin is to join oneworld®, adding Europe´s fifth
largest airline and Germany´s second biggest carrier to the world´s leading
quality airline alliance.

Air Berlin group member Austria´s NIKI will become an affiliate member of the
alliance.

A memorandum of understanding between Air Berlin and oneworld was completed in
the airline´s Berlin home city last night, with a formal alliance membership
agreement to be signed soon.

Air Berlin is expected to start flying as part of oneworld in early 2012 - just
weeks before the opening of the new Berlin Brandenburg International Airport,
which is being built as a major new hub for Europe.

As a major player in the European air travel market, Air Berlin served in 2009 a
total of 160 destinations in some 40 countries, operating almost 600 daily
departures. It carried 28 million passengers, generating revenues of EUR3.2
billion (US$4.5 billion). As of July 2010, Air Berlin operates a fleet of 165
aircraft, including Austria´s NIKI, serving 168 destinations.

When it becomes part of oneworld, its customers will gain access to an
unrivalled global network. It will add almost 75 gateways to the oneworld map,
expand the alliance´s coverage to almost 900 destinations in nearly 150
countries, served by a combined fleet of 2,500 aircraft operating some 9,500
flights a day and carrying 340 million passengers a year.

Members of Air Berlin´s topbonus frequent flyer programme will be able to earn
and redeem rewards on any of oneworld´s 13 other top-class carriers, with top
tier members able to use any of the group´s 550 plus airport lounges, and its
network will be covered by oneworld´s full range of alliance fares. Frequent
flyer cardholders of oneworld´s established airlines will be able to earn and
redeem rewards when flying Air Berlin.

As a starting point in its oneworld implementation, Air Berlin will develop
one-on-one co-operative agreements with key established members of the alliance
American Airlines and Finnair, to take effect this coming winter season. (See
separate news releases.) Bilateral agreements with British Airways and Iberia
are planned to follow.

British Airways will support Air Berlin through its oneworld implementation
programme as its alliance sponsor.

The addition of Air Berlin as a member elect is the latest significant step in
what is turning into a breakthrough year for oneworld as it builds further on
its position as the world´s premier airline alliance, expanding its unrivalled
route network still further and enabling it to offer even more services and
benefits to customers.

All but one of the alliance´s existing carriers (with Mexicana the exception)
already serve Air Berlin´s German homeland - the most populous country and the
biggest economy in the European Union. They will also be looking to expand
their own services to its key hubs Berlin and Dusseldorf as the new alliance
recruit prepares to join the group.

Air Berlin Chief Executive Joachim Hunold said: "Joining a global alliance is
the logical next step in Air Berlin´s development. We are very pleased and
proud to be lining up to join what is clearly the world´s top quality airline
grouping. Becoming part of oneworld would be one of the most significant
departures so far for our airline, enabling us to offer our customers a truly
global network served by partners who include some of the best and biggest
airlines in the world. We look forward to completing all joining requirements as
soon as possible."

Willie Walsh, Chief Executive of British Airways, oneworld´s sponsor of Air
Berlin, said: "Air Berlin will make an ideal oneworld partner. It has an
excellent reputation for customer service - right in line with oneworld´s focus
on quality above quantity in terms of membership. Its network is one of the
best in Central Europe, expanding the alliance´s coverage of this region
markedly. British Airways is delighted to be supporting Air Berlin´s addition
to oneworld by acting as its sponsor into the alliance - and we look forward to
establishing our bilateral co-operation."

American Airlines´ Chairman and Chief Executive, and oneworld Governing Board
Chairman, Gerard Arpey added: "oneworld already features four of Europe´s best
airlines. Adding the continent´s fifth biggest carrier will greatly enhance our
coverage throughout this region. With all the other significant steps we are
taking in this breakthrough year for our alliance, this represents a great leap
forward in our journey to establish oneworld firmly as the world´s premier
airline alliance with members unmatched in brand and service quality."

Already in oneworld´s "breakthrough year":
•Russia´s leading domestic carrier S7 Airlines is on track to join in the coming
months.
•India´s leading carrier Kingfisher Airlines became a oneworld member elect in
June.
•Japan Airlines has been expanding its co-operation with its oneworld partners
since reaffirming its membership of the alliance in February, filing days later
with American Airlines for anti-trust immunity for a joint business across the
Pacific and more than doubling its code-sharing with British Airways.
•American Airlines, British Airways, Iberia, Finnair and Royal Jordanian this
month received long-awaited final approval for their application for anti-trust
immunity across the Atlantic and the proposed transatlantic joint business
between American, BA and Iberia.
•British Airways and Iberia are on track to complete their merger by the end of
the year.
•LAN Airlines celebrated its 10th anniversary as a oneworld member on 1 June.
Since joining, it has added to the grouping its affiliates in Argentina, Ecuador
and Peru. With Mexico and Central America´s leading airline Mexicana joining
oneworld in November 2009, this extended oneworld´s position still further as
the leading Latin American alliance.
•oneworld added the World Airline Awards´ World´s Best Alliance title to the
World Travel Awards´ World's Leading Airline Alliance trophies it has won for
the past seven years, as the only winner of that award since it was introduced
in 2003.

About Air Berlin

Since its launch in 1979, Air Berlin has grown into Germany´s second largest
airline - and the fifth biggest in Europe in terms of passengers boarded - after
taking over Deutsche BA and LTU and gaining a 49.9 per cent stake in Austria´s
NIKI and a 49 per cent holding in Switzerland´s Belair.

It has developed from its origins in the shorthaul leisure market to cater also
for business travellers with its Euro Shuttle service providing high frequency
connections between many of the continent´s key destinations and now also flies
longhaul.

It is one of Europe´s most frequent winners in the various airline industry
award schemes.

On its shorthaul services, it offers a single-class cabin. On its longhaul
routes, it offers two-classes, with a premium business cabin and individual
in-flight entertainment screens for each passenger.

While it has been named the World´s Best Low-Cost Airline seven years running in
the World Airline Awards run by the Skytrax airline quality organisation, it now
offers the full-range of services associated with a full-service network
carrier, including its frequent flyer programme topbonus, and, for premium
passengers, lounges, priority check-in and, for all passengers, free alcoholic
and non-alcoholic drinks and meals or snacks on every departure.

It will move in June 2012 into the new Berlin Brandenburg International airport,
which will have capacity eventually for 45 million passengers a year.

Air Berlin holds major market shares in its home city and also at Dusseldorf,
Hamburg, Stuttgart and Palma de Majorca. Among its international destinations,
it serves oneworld hubs Helsinki, Los Angeles, Madrid, Miami, Moscow Domodedovo,
New York JFK and Bangkok.

Its current fleet (including NIKI) comprises 165 aircraft, with an average age
of five years, including 13 Airbus A330s, 75 A321s/A320s/A319s, 63 Boeing 737s,
four Embraer E190s and 10 Bombardier Q400s. It employs 8,500 staff.

During its latest financial year, to end December 2009, it generated revenues
totalling EUR3.2 billion (US$4.5 billion), achieving an operating profit of
EUR28.5 million (US$36 million).

About oneworld

oneworld brings together some of the best and biggest names in the airline
business - American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Iberia,
Japan Airlines, LAN, Malév Hungarian Airlines, Mexicana, Qantas and Royal
Jordanian, and around 20 affiliates including American Eagle, Dragonair, LAN
Argentina, LAN Ecuador and LAN Peru. Russia´s S7 Airlines will join the alliance
in 2010 with India´s Kingfisher Airlines also a member elect and Air Berlin now
lining up to join. Between them, these airlines:
•Serve almost 900 airports in nearly 150 countries, with some 9,500 daily
departures.
•Offer more than 550 airport lounges for premium customers.
•Carry 340 million passengers a year.
•Operate a combined fleet of almost 2,500 aircraft.
•Generate around US$90 billion annual revenues in total.

oneworld enables its members to offer their customers more services and benefits
than any airline can provide on its own. These include a broader route network,
opportunities to earn and redeem frequent flyer miles and points across the
combined oneworld network and more airport lounges. oneworld also offers more
alliance fares than any of its competitors.

oneworld was named the World´s Best Alliance two weeks ago in the 2010 World
Airline Awards and has been voted the World's Leading Airline Alliance for the
past seven years in the World Travel Awards. It is the only winner of this award
since it was introduced in 2003.

Webcast

A webcast of today´s press briefing announcing these developments is available
for viewing on-demand, featuring:
•Air Berlin Chief Executive Joachim Hunold
•British Airways Chief Executive Willie Walsh
•American Airlines President Tom Horton
•Finnair Chief Executive Mika Vehviläinen
•oneworld Managing Partner John McCulloch

To view the webcast in German, go to airberlin.com/pk_oneworld

To view the webcast in English, go to airberlin.com/pressconference_oneworld

Pictures and logos

High resolution pictures and logos are available for downloading on-line:
•Air Berlin, go to http://www.airberlin.com/site/presse_service.php?LANG=eng
•oneworld and its member airlines, go to
http://www.oneworld.com/ow/news-and-information/corporate-image-gallery

Further inquiry note:
Hans-Christoph Noack
Director Corporate Communications Air Berlin
Tel.: + 49 30 3434 1500
Fax: + 49 30 3434 1509
Mail: [email protected]
end of announcement euro adhoc
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issuer: Air Berlin PLC
The Hour House, High Street 32
UK-WD3 1ER Rickmansworth, Herts
phone: +49 (0)30 3434 1500
FAX: +49 (0)30/3434-1049
mail: [email protected]
WWW: http://www.airberlin.com
sector: Air Transport
ISIN: GB00B128C026
indexes: SDAX, Classic All Share, Prime All Share
stockmarkets: regulated dealing/prime standard: Frankfurt, free trade: Berlin,
Hamburg, Stuttgart, Düsseldorf, München
language: English

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