CODE SHARING; What Does It Mean?presented by Harold Stephens
Travel Correspondent for Thai Airways International
It’s much in the news theses, days, code sharing. but what dose it mean? For the traveller it opens up some marvelous benefits. For example, THAI and Turkish airlines signed a code share agreement now making destinations like Istanbul possible.
On 26 December 2011, Thai Airways International and Turkish Airlines jointly announced the signing of code share cooperation, on the route Bangkok-Istanbul-Bangkok operated by Turkish Airlines and on other Southeast Asian countries where Turkish airlines doesn’t fly but where Thai Airways International does fly.
Sound a bit confusing? It goes like this: An interline partnership where one carrier markets service and places its code on another carrier's flights. This offers carriers an opportunity to provide service to destinations not in their route structure. These schedules are considered online bookings for most situations.
The confusing part may be when you go to board an aircraft. You were pretty sure you bought a ticket on THAI airline, but when you showed up at the airport, they sent you to another airline in another part of the airport because that other airline is "operating this flight."
With the Turkish agreements, Mr. Piyasvasti Amranand, THAI President, said, “This code share agreement between THAI and Turkish Airlines is a significant step forward to expand our respective market presence extensively into Europe and into Asia. By code sharing with Turkish Airlines, THAI can reach many other European cities through Istanbul, which is another gateway for THAI into Europe as well as destinations in Turkey. Both our airlines can look forward to mutual strengthening of potential markets through Turkish Airlines’ extensive route net into Europe and through THAI’s strong network in Asia and Australia.”
Mr. Temel Kotil, Turkish Airlines CEO, said, “Turkish Airlines is pleased to join with Thai Airways International on this code share collaboration, which will expand potential air traffic between Turkey and Thailand. Code-sharing with Turkish Airlines expands THAI’s network to destinations in Turkey and Europe that THAI does not operate . . . This agreement successfully feeds traffic from Turkish Airlines into THAI’s route network, especially to and from Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, and Australia. In addition, Istanbul becomes another gateway into Europe for THAI on Turkish Airlines’ route network.”
The code share agreement took effect on 15 July 2011 and the first code share flight was implemented on 12 September 2011.
And what better exciting destinations can there be than Istanbul, once known as constrainable? We will be hearing more about that great city next week.
Harold Stephens
Bangkok
E-mail: ROH Weekly Travel (hstephens_1@yahoo.com)
Note: The article is the personal view of the writer and does not necessarily reflect the view of Thai Airways International Public Company Limited. | 
| | 
THAI and Turkish Airlines Sign Code Share Agreement
Mr. Piyasvasti Amranand (4th from left), President of Thai Airways and Mr. Temel Kotil (5th from left), Turkish Airlines CEO, recently signed code share agreement at THAI’s Head Office. By code sharing with Turkish Airlines, THAI can reach many other European cities through Istanbul, which is another gateway for THAI into Europe as well as destinations in Turkey. Also present at the signing ceremony were Mr. Pandit Chanapai (3rd from left), THAI Executive Vice President of Commercial and Mr. Ufuk Ugur (6th from left), Turkish Airlines’ Senior President of Asia and Far East. |
|
