Brazilian regulators recently approved the proposed merger between Brazil’s TAM Airlines and Chile’s LAN, which will create Latin America’s largest carrier, an aviation behemoth with approximately $15 billion in revenue, and 6% of the Global travel market.
One of the conditions imposed by the Cade (Administrative Council for Economic Defense) was that the new group joins a single international alliance. Currently TAM is part of Star Alliance, while LAN is a long time member of OneWorld.
According to some industry analysts, the most likely scenario is that the LATAM will join OneWorld, whose major member American Airlines is certainly negotiating with the group, despite its recent filling for chapter 11 in the US.
While that would represent a major adjustment for TAM, which joined Star Alliance just a few years ago, and is still not completely integrated in the alliance, analysts see a better fit with OneWorld.
