US based Southwest Airlines and Canada’s WestJet Airlines paved the way for a strong relationship by announcing codeshares starting 2009. Not only will the relationship give customers access to a much larger number of destinations across North America and the Carribean, but the customers of both the airlines would appreciate the seamless brand experience across borders.
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Both Southwest and WestJet are the leading budget carriers in their respective markets and the alliance has the potential to enhance the brand value of both the airlines due to some key factors. Here are some of these factors.
- Greater choice - Just like global alliances of full-service airlines allow passengers access to routes not flown by a specific airline, but a partner carrier, this partnership will give customers of budget airlines in North America the same conveniences for the first time. Furthermore, like Tiger Airways in Asia and Air Berlin in Europe, this alliance will allow passengers to take multi-leg budget flights too.
- One size fits all - Both Southwest and WestJet fly only Boeing 737s, which will ensure a consistent experience for passengers in either airline. Moreover, sometime in the future, as both these airlines operate from each others’ hubs, maintainability would be much easier too.
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