China Eastern and its subsidiary Shanghai Airlines officially joined the SkyTeam alliance this Tuesday, June 21, 2011.
Air France said that the arrival of these two companies based in Shanghai strengthens the alliance’s presence in the region by offering a daily 10% of additional links with Greater China.
China Eastern Airlines and Shanghai provide 32 new destinations to the SkyTeam network with Chinese cities such as Jiayuguan, which locks the Gansu corridor on the Silk Road, and two new international destinations: Macao (China) and Colombo (Sri Lanka).
The alliance will continue its development in Greater China, one of the major poles of economic growth in the world, with the arrival of China Airlines, based in Taiwan, in 2011.
From now on, passengers on China Eastern and Shanghai Airlines have the opportunity to earn and use Miles on flights to all member companies of the alliance. In contrast, members of loyalty programs in other SkyTeam member airlines, including Flying Blue can earn and redeem miles when traveling on the lines of China Eastern and Shanghai Airlines.
Passengers also have frequent access to over 465 lounges worldwide, including those of China Eastern and Shanghai Airlines in Shanghai Pudong Airport and Hongqiao.
China Eastern and Shanghai Airlines will now be integrated into all SkyTeam offers available to customers and businesses, which will strengthen the commercial ties between this region and the world.