and profits by pooling the ground(rat airline maintaining its own ground crew) and code-sharing----the practice of two So alliances are terrific for airlines-----but are they good for the passenger? Absolutely, say the airlines: think of the lounges, the joint FFP( frequent flyer program) benefits, the round-the-world fares, and the global service networks. Then there's the promise of"seamless " travel: the ability to, say, travel from S ingapore to Rome to New york to rio de janiero. all on one ticket without having to wait hours for connections or worry about your bags. Sounds utopian? Peter Buecking, Cathay Pacific's director of sales and marketing, thinks that seamless travel is still evolving It's fair to say that these links are only in their infancy. The key to seamlessness rests in infrastructure and information sharing. We're working on this. Henry Ma, spokesperson for Star Alliance in Hong Kong, lists some of the other benefits for consumers:"Global travelers have an easier time making connections and planning their itineraries. Ma claims alliances also assure passengers consistent service Critics of alliances say the much-touted benefits to the consumer are mostly pie in the sky, that alliances are all about reducing costs for the airlines, rationalizing services and running joint marketing programs. Jeff Blyskal, associate ed itor of Consumer Reports magazine, says the promotional ballyhoo over alliances is much ado about nothing. "I dont see much of a gain for consumers: all iances are just marketing gimmick. And as far as seamless travel goes, I'll believe it when I see it Most airlines cant even get their own connections under control, let alone coordinate with another airline” Blyskal believes alliances will ultimately result in decreased flight choices and increased costs for consumers. Instead of two airlines competing and each operating a flight on the same route at 70% capacity, the allied pair will share the route and run one full flight. Since fewer seats will be available, passengers will be obliged to pay more for ticket The truth about alliances and their merits probably lies somewhere between the travel utopia presented by the players and the evil emp ires portrayed by their critics And how much they affect you depends on what kind of traveler you are Those who ve already made the elite grade in the fFP of a major airline stand to benefit the most when it joins an alliance: then they enjoy the FFP perks and advantages on any and all of the member carriers. For example, if you're a marco Polo Club"gold member of Cathay Pacific's Asia Miles FFP, you will automatically be treated as a valuable customer by all members of Oneworld, of which Cathy Pacific is a member----even if you ve never flown with them before For those who havent made the top grade in any FFP, alliances might be a way of simplifying the earning of frequent flyer mile. For example, I belong to United Airlines Mileage Plus and generally fly less than 25,000 miles a year. But I earn miles with every flight I take on Star Alliance member----All Nippon Airways and Thai Airways If you fly less than I do, you might be smarter to stay out of the FFP gameand increase profits by pooling manpower resources on the ground (rather than each airline maintaining its own ground crew) and code-sharing----the practice of two partners selling tickets and operating only one aircraft. So alliances are terrific for airlines-----but are they good for the passenger? Absolutely, say the airlines: think of the lounges, the joint FFP ( frequent flyer program) benefits, the round-the-world fares, and the global service networks. Then there’s the promise of “seamless” travel: the ability to, say, travel from Singapore to Rome to New York to Rio de Janiero, all on one ticket, without having to wait hours for connections or worry about your bags. Sounds utopian? Peter Buecking, Cathay Pacific’s director of sales and marketing, thinks that seamless travel is still evolving. “It’s fair to say that these links are only in their infancy. The key to seamlessness rests in infrastructure and information sharing. We’re working on this.” Henry Ma, spokesperson for Star Alliance in Hong Kong, lists some of the other benefits for consumers: “Global travelers have an easier time making connections and planning their itineraries.” Ma claims alliances also assure passengers consistent service standards. Critics of alliances say the much-touted benefits to the consumer are mostly pie in the sky, that alliances are all about reducing costs for the airlines, rationalizing services and running joint marketing programs. Jeff Blyskal, associate editor of Consumer Reports magazine, says the promotional ballyhoo over alliances is much ado about nothing. “ I don’t see much of a gain for consumers: alliances are just a marketing gimmick. And as far as seamless travel goes, I’ll believe it when I see it. Most airlines can’t even get their own connections under control, let alone coordinate with another airline.” Blyskal believes alliances will ultimately result in decreased flight choices and increased costs for consumers. Instead of two airlines competing and each operating a flight on the same route at 70% capacity, the allied pair will share the route and run one full flight. Since fewer seats will be available, passengers will be obliged to pay more for ticket. The truth about alliances and their merits probably lies somewhere between the travel utopia presented by the players and the evil empires portrayed by their critics. And how much they affect you depends on what kind of traveler you are. Those who’ve already made the elite grade in the FFP of a major airline stand to benefit the most when it joins an alliance: then they enjoy the FFP perks and advantages on any and all of the member carriers. For example, if you’re a Marco Polo Club “gold ”member of Cathay Pacific’s Asia Miles FFP, you will automatically be treated as a valuable customer by all members of Oneworld, of which Cathy Pacific is a member----even if you’ve never flown with them before. For those who haven’t made the top grade in any FFP, alliances might be a way of simplifying the earning of frequent flyer mile. For example, I belong to United Airline’s Mileage Plus and generally fly less than 25,000 miles a year. But I earn miles with every flight I take on Star Alliance member----All Nippon Airways and Thai Airways. If you fly less than I do, you might be smarter to stay out of the FFP game