Star Alliance hopes to take Indian partner onboard within a year

Bangkok: Star Alliance, the world's leading aviation alliance with 17 airlines as its members, expects to have an Indian airline on board within a year, a senior executive said Monday.

'We are confident in the next year or so we will be in a position to announce an Indian airline,' said Alasdair Carthew, director of corporate affairs in Asia-Pacific for the Star Alliance.

The alliance, which shares benefits and cuts costs for member airlines, will co-host with Thai Airways International (THAI) a major forum on the future of the aviation industry in Bangkok on June 28 to 29, with a special focus on the tremendous potential of the newly opened markets of China and India.

By December both China Air and Shanghai Airlines are scheduled to join the Star Alliance, with Turkish Airlines expected to join next year.

Carthew said the alliance had to wait for the regulatory system to be put in place in China and India before choosing the appropriate airline partners in these countries.

'These things don't happen overnight,' he said of Star's search for an Indian partner. 'We spend a bit of time identifying the type of carrier that would fit into our network.'