Finnair Expands Its Options for Customers with Oneworld Joint Business Moves

Finnair has joined the transatlantic joint business founded by fellow oneworld alliance members American Airlines, British Airways and Iberia.

As of July 2, Finnair passengers flying to North America can book flights to dozens more North American cities on one single ticket.

Finnair operates Airbus A330-300s between Helsinki and New York and on various routes between Helsinki and Asia

Customers of the other three airlines now also have better access to 13 cities in Finland and the rest of Europe as a result of Finnair’s Nordic and Baltic connections from the carrier’s Helsinki hub.

On July 1, Finnair also announced its intention to join the joint business agreement between oneworld members Japan Airlines and British Airways on traffic between Japan and Europe.

BA and Japan Airlines began their Europe-Japan joint business in October 2012 after receiving the requisite regulatory approvals from the European Union and the Japanese government. Finnair will need to receive the same regulatory approvals in order to join the BA-JAL joint business.

Finnair says both its joint-business moves are examples of the Helsinki-based carrier pursuing tighter cooperation within the oneworld alliance to improve network connectivity and serve the needs of intercontinental customers better.

Finnair operates this Airbus A340-300 in a livery in which the carrier displays prominently the fact it is a member of the oneworld alliance

According to Finnair, the American Airlines, British Airways and Iberia transatlantic joint business ‒ which went into effect in October 2010 ‒ offers customers flying between North America and the European’ Union (plus Switzerland and Norway):

● The ability to mix and match flights on all four carriers for the most convenient scheduling and best pricing;

● Smoother connections for onward destinations through coordinated schedules and oneworld Global Support centers at Chicago O’Hare, Dallas/Fort Worth, London Heathrow, Los Angeles, Madrid Barajas, Miami and New York JFK;

● The ability to book transatlantic codeshare flights for Finnair, American Airlines, British Airways and Iberia and via any of the airlines’ websites;

● Greater benefits for Finnair Plus, Executive Club, Iberia Plus and AAdvantage loyalty-program customers, including better opportunities to obtain and use mileage points on transatlantic flights;

As part of a design partnership with Finnish design house Marimekko, Finnair has given this Airbus A340-300 a special livery showing Marimekko’s ‘Unikko’ design. Another Finnair long-haul aircraft is also to wear the livery

● Integrated customer support – online, through call centers and at the airport; and

● Greater connectivity on all four airlines in case of disruption.

As part of the transatlantic joint business, Finnair has added its ‘AY’ flight code to selected American Airlines, British Airways and Iberia flights between North America and Europe.

American Airlines, British Airways and Iberia have also added their respective ‘AA’, ‘BA’ and ‘IB’ flight codes to Finnair’s daily flights between New York JFK and Helsinki-Vantaa Airport.

Altogether, the four airlines’ joint transatlantic business now operates up to 102 daily round-trips between North America and Europe, serving 42 gateways on either side of the Atlantic.
Customers of the joint business also have access to a further 163 onward connections in North America and 126 in Europe.