Malaysia Airlines takes to the skies today as oneworld member

Malaysia Airlines commenced operations today as a full member of the award winning oneworld airline alliance.

In commemoration of the event, a Malaysia Airlines' A330-300 showcasing the special oneworld livery took off as flight MH129 from Kuala Lumpur to Melbourne at 10:15am this morning with 263 passengers.

The aircraft displayed the aircraft's distinct design features ' oneworld ' in 6ft (2 metre) high blue letters along a white fuselage and the airline's standard tailfin, serving as a huge flying billboard highlighting that the national carrier of Malaysia is now a member of the alliance, offering the full range of oneworld services and benefits.

The oneworld logos will be applied by the side passenger entrance doors on Malaysia Airlines' entire fleet of 88 aircraft as part of a massive rebranding programme that will also see the alliance logo added virtually wherever the Malaysia Airlines' name is displayed—at airport check-in desks and signages, on its website, tickets, boarding passes and all items of stationery.

Malaysia Airlines' Group CEO Ahmad Jauhari was joined by Mr Michael Blunt, Vice-President Corporate Communications of oneworld Alliance, member carriers’ uniformed representatives and senior management staff of Malaysia Airlines to send-off passengers on the flight, followed by a cake cutting ceremony with the participating airline staff.

In addition to the send-off, Malaysia Airlines entry to oneworld will be heavily promoted from today onwards via one of its biggest marketing campaigns in the airline's history with extensive advertisements highlighting the new alliance services and benefits available to its customers.

All cardholders in its Enrich frequent flyer programme have been sent new membership cards, bearing the oneworld logo and ‘gemstone’ tier indicator, to ensure they receive their alliance benefits from today when traveling on the alliance partners throughout the entire oneworld network.

Since accepting its invitation to join the alliance in June 2011, Malaysia Airlines has expanded its code-sharing relationships to four established oneworld partners – Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Japan Airlines and Royal Jordanian.

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About oneworld

oneworld is an alliance of the world’s leading airlines committed to providing the highest level of service and convenience to frequent international travellers.   oneworld airlines include airberlin, American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Iberia, Japan Airlines, LAN, Malaysia Airlines, Qantas, Royal Jordanian and S7 Airlines, and around 30 affiliates.  SriLankan Airlines and Qatar Airways are on track to join soon. 

Between them, these airlines:

·         Serve some 860 airports in almost 160 countries, with more than 9,300 daily departures.

·         Carry almost a million passengers a day on a combined fleet of more than 2,500 aircraft.

·         Generate nearly US$ 120 billion annual revenues in total.

oneworld member airlines work together to deliver consistently a superior, seamless travel experience, with special privileges and rewards for frequent flyers, including earning and redeeming miles and points across the entire alliance network. Top tier cardholders (Emerald and Sapphire) enjoy access to some 550 airport lounges.

oneworld is currently the holder of three leading international awards for airline alliances - named the Best Airline Alliance by Global Traveler in its GT Tested Reader Survey 2012 Awards for the third year running, the World’s Leading Airline Alliance in the 2012 World Travel Awards for the 10th year running, and Australian Business Traveller Best Airline Alliance in 2012 for the second year running.

oneworld offers one of the most extensive ranges of alliance fares available, enabling customers to fly on multiple airlines with attractive savings on regular published fares, whether they want to fly right around the world, or explore one or more continents or regions.

These include Visit passes for Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Australia and New Zealand, Europe and Japan.

For full details of all oneworld fares, see oneworld.com