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(CNN) -- When it comes to airline alliances, there is safety and profitability in numbers -- even more so as the industry tries to stave off the worst effects of the Great Recession and sluggish recovery, where we have seen mergers and code share agreements.
All the major European airlines are part of one of the three big alliances. There is Star (the biggest) based around Lufthansa and United Airlines; Skyteam based around Air France/KLM and Delta; and Oneworld based around BA and American Airlines.
Alliances are a key part of the aviation industry. According to Oneworld CEO Bruce Ashby, 86% of the revenue from travel between the world's top 100 cities business is booked with alliances. "Passengers who travel for business are heavily invested in alliances carriers," he says.
Oneworld has marked a milestone in airline alliance history with its newest member Qatar Airways being the first Gulf carrier to join an alliance. Competition between the "Big Three" (Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airways) is rife and now that Qatar has made this bold step to join Oneworld, the impact of Gulf carriers on the industry and the relationships they choose to forge are being followed more closely than ever before, to see how airlines and alliances will respond.
See also: Gulf hubs become travel hotspots
"As more airlines are aligned and more consolidation occurs, alliances actually end up competing for members in some ways," said Bruce Ashby, CEO of the Oneworld alliance. "Now that more and more airlines belong, the tension between them has grown."
For other Gulf carriers, a cosy codeshare with different alliances is as far as they'll go. Emirates has codeshare agreements with Oneworld carrier Qantas and, most recently, with Star Alliance member TAP Portugal. Skyteam welcomes Air France's partnership with Etihad and Air Berlin, where Etihad owns 29% of the German airline.
All the major European airlines are part of one of the three big alliances. There is Star (the biggest) based around Lufthansa and United Airlines; Skyteam based around Air France/KLM and Delta; and Oneworld based around BA and American Airlines.
Alliances are a key part of the aviation industry. According to Oneworld CEO Bruce Ashby, 86% of the revenue from travel between the world's top 100 cities business is booked with alliances. "Passengers who travel for business are heavily invested in alliances carriers," he says.
Oneworld has marked a milestone in airline alliance history with its newest member Qatar Airways being the first Gulf carrier to join an alliance. Competition between the "Big Three" (Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airways) is rife and now that Qatar has made this bold step to join Oneworld, the impact of Gulf carriers on the industry and the relationships they choose to forge are being followed more closely than ever before, to see how airlines and alliances will respond.
See also: Gulf hubs become travel hotspots
"As more airlines are aligned and more consolidation occurs, alliances actually end up competing for members in some ways," said Bruce Ashby, CEO of the Oneworld alliance. "Now that more and more airlines belong, the tension between them has grown."
For other Gulf carriers, a cosy codeshare with different alliances is as far as they'll go. Emirates has codeshare agreements with Oneworld carrier Qantas and, most recently, with Star Alliance member TAP Portugal. Skyteam welcomes Air France's partnership with Etihad and Air Berlin, where Etihad owns 29% of the German airline.