BA Connect UK regional network no longer part of oneworld

6 de março de 2007

The UK regional operations of oneworld affiliate BA Connect are no longer part of the alliance from today, following their sale to UK regional carrier Flybe.

Some 50 UK regional routes are affected. However, all but two of the destinations served by BA Connect - Belfast City and Southampton - will remain linked to the oneworld network, through flights by other parts of the British Airways group or other alliance members.

Most existing reservations on the BA Connect routes affected - including those booked as part of a oneworld alliance fare or as a frequent flyer reward redemption - will be transferred to the new operator.

BA Connect's flights from London City will now be operated by British Airways subsidiary BA CityFlyer. British Airways will also retain the Manchester-New York route. These services will continue to be part of oneworld. Flights from Bristol, East Midlands and Manchester operated by oneworld affiliate GB Airways, which flies as another British Airways franchisee, will also be unaffected by the BA Connect changes.

The change comes as oneworld undergoes the biggest expansion in its history, with Japan Airlines, along with five of its affiliates, Malév Hungarian Airlines, Royal Jordanian, LAN Argentina and LAN Ecuador offering the alliance's services and benefits from 1 de abril de 2007, increasing the alliance's network by almost a hundred destinations.