6/2012network STAR ALLIANCE

STAR ALLIANCECELEBRATES15TH ANNIVERSARY AROUND THE WORLDSEE STORY PAGES 4-7

...just for employees

THE STAR ALLIANCE EMPLOYEE WEBSITE

The employee website is a place where you can find just

about anything you need to help you deliver the Alliance’s

products and services. As well, you’ll find the latest news

from member carriers, publications, photos, videos and a

lot more. Check out http://www.starallianceemploy-

ees.com/ to stay connected. Under the Publications Tab,

you’ll find our Network publication, poster downloads,

the Reference Guide, In Focus (similar to a company

annual report) and the Products & Services magazine.

As well, you can access news from the site on the new

Star Alliance employees mobile website. It is available

for any smartphone without the need for an app. Simply

enter www.starallianceemployees.com into your

mobile browser, and the version you need is automatically

determined and displayed.

STAR ALLIANCE CONNECTS Staying connected

with your colleagues is easy with http://www.staral-

lianceconnects.com. It’s a networking site where you

can get to know other employees around the world. You

can upload photos, search for colleagues, participate in

discussions, customise your home page and more. More

than 4,800 employees are using the site. Create a profile

and join the conversation!

HOT OFF THE PRESS! The

latest issue of our In Focus magazine

is now online at http://www.

starallianceemployees.com/

publications/in-focus.html. The

issue contains a look back at 2011,

and provides a bird’s eye view of the

products and services produced

by Star Alliance. As well, each month,

look for our Network publication, which gives you the

latest news about the Alliance, its products and services,

statistics and a lot more. Go to http://www.staral-

lianceemployees.com/publications/networkonline/

network-2012.html to read this issue, or previous ones,

and to http://www.starallianceemployees.com/

subscriptions/subscribe-to-our-publications.html to

subscribe to receive each issue in your inbox.

The 2011 issue of the Reference Guide is also online. The

publication houses policies, procedures, airport maps,

lounge information and a lot more to help you deliver Star

Alliances services. You can find the current version at

http://www.starallianceemployees.com/reference-

guide.html in both PDF and HTML for easy reference.

The 2012 version is slated for publication this summer.

STARQUIZ StarQuiz is a fun way to learn about the Alliance. Sign up and see how much you know about the Alliance, and while you’re at it, try to outsmart almost 11,000 of your colleagues from the other carriers who have played the game. Employees from Air New Zealand and EGYPTAIR are the high scorers. Click on http://starquiz.starallianceemployees.com/ or connect from the front page of the employee site.

SUPERSTARS PROJECT Getting the Star Alliance message to more than 400,000 employees around the world is a daunting task, and one that we count on employees to help us with. If you would like to promote Star Alliance in your workplace, think about joining more than 400 of your colleagues in our Superstars group to help us spread the word about the Alliance.Sign up by going to www.starallianceconnects.com, create a profile, then click on the Superstars group. It’s a closed group, but we will get an email that you wish to join.

SOCIAL MEDIA Watch for regular news updates from the Star Alliance Corporate Affairs team on Twitter at @staralerts, and for Facebook fans, look for us at http://www.facebook.com/staralliance.

JOIN OUR MAILING LIST Don’t miss any Alliance news by joining our mailing list and signing up for RSS feeds by going to the home page of the employee

website and clicking on http://www.starallianceem-

ployees.com/subscriptions/subscribe-to-our-

publications.html. You can choose to receive our news feeds or links to our publications when they come out. You can also unsubscribe at the same link.

Enjoy the two websites and be sure to let us know how we’re doing!

The Star Alliance employee website is constantly changing with new information and news added almost daily. If you’re looking for information about the Alliance, it’s one of the best resources around. While you’re online, check into our second website, Star Alliance Connects. It’s a growing networking site that puts you in touch with other employees around the world. Here’s what you’ll find on both sites.

STAR ALLIANCE

contents

Just for employees 2

Star Alliance’s 15th anniversary 4 celebrated around the world

CEO Mark Schwab connects 8 with customers on Facebook

Employee marketplace in Shanghai 9 attracts more than 350

Denver marketplace draws employees 9 from four member carriers

New tool helps customer relations 10 teams work together

New training module for handling 11 Round the World fares

New checkin kiosk tested in Munich 12

Task Force to examine fuel efficiency 12

Bits and bites from the member carriers 13

A snapshot of Star Alliance members 14

STAR ALLIANCE’S 15TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATED AROUND THE WORLD

There was a whirlwind of activity on May 14

as employees and customers around the world

celebrated Star Alliance’s 15th Anniversary with

cake, balloons and special events. For customers,

Marketing focused on thanking customers for their

loyalty through the years.

Customer Online CompetitionStar Alliance offered a selection of “once in

a lifetime” trips. In a web-based competition

participants had to find a virtual aircraft hidden

somewhere on the network. The lucky winner and

14 friends can jet off to one of 27 global festivals.

Further prizes included a Business Class Round the

World ticket for two and 15 additional round-trip air

tickets to one of the 27 global festivals.

Frequent Flyer PromotionAll member carrier FFPs offered their most active

frequent travellers a bonus of 15,000 miles/points or

equivalent. The bonus will be awarded to the 15 FFP

members registered in each programme who travel

on the most airlines within our network between

now and Nov. 14.

RTW Special FareA 15% discount was offered on all Round the

World fares in Economy Class for tickets sold up to

May 29.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

BOSTON➤

TORONTO➤

AMSTERDAM➤

LOS ANGELES➤

ne

two

rk 6

/12

4

PHILADELPHIA➤

BEIJING➤

STOCKHOLM➤

NAGOYA➤

AMSTERDAM➤

HONG KONG➤LJUBLJANA➤

SEOUL➤

ZURICH➤BRUSSELS➤

ne

two

rk 6

/12

5

Airport ActivitiesPassengers using the Star Alliance branded

lounges at Cairo, London - Heathrow Terminal 1,

Los Angeles — Tom Bradley International Terminal,

Nagoya and Paris — Charles de Gaulle Terminal 1

received a small gift. In addition, lounges provided

special cakes and other local celebratory items. At

selected airports, economy passengers received

celebration cards and vouchers to enter lounges or

to access priority check-in so they can experience

first-hand a Star Alliance Gold benefit.

Angie Abbott, Lounge Manager at the Star Alliance

lounge in Terminal 1, Heathrow noted, “Everyone

enjoyed themselves. There was a great atmosphere

in the lounge and guests where pleasantly surprised

with their gift bags. The cake was perfect and

looked great in reception. It was enjoyed by the

guests throughout the day.”

Employees at airports also celebrated the day.

See pages 4-7 for photos from their events around

the world.

15th Anniversary decals on Star Alliance liveried aircraft

Member airlines added a 15th anniversary decal to

their Star Alliance liveried planes.

15th Anniversary pins15th Anniversary pins were distributed globally

in response to carriers’ requests, so that the

vast majority of frontline staff could wear these

throughout the anniversary year, in accordance

with the guidelines given by each member airline.

Other merchandise producing the 15th Anniversary

logo has been produced for distribution to clients at

events in the coming months.

FacebookIn view of the growing importance of social media,

Mark Schwab spent two hours online on May 14

and responded live to questions, comments and

suggestions from customers on the Star Alliance

Facebook page. (See accompanying story)

Celebration VideoA short celebration video, featuring employees

from across the globe, was posted on YouTube and

shown at various events. http://www.youtube.

com/user/staralliancenetwork?feature=res

ults_main

HONG KONG➤

RIO DE JANEIRO➤

MUMBAI➤

ne

two

rk 6

/12

6

SHANGHAI➤

KUALA LUMPUR➤ORLANDO➤

SINGAPORE➤CHICAGO➤

GUANGZHOU➤TAIPEI➤

ne

two

rk 6

/12

7

While some readers wanted help with their

frequent flyer accounts, others were interested

in the Alliance’s future plans. For instance, with

regard to talks with potential member carriers

in the Middle East, Schwab noted, “In answer to

your question on the Middle East. We are not

currently in talks with any new carriers in that

region. We are well-positioned to serve that

market, especially with Turkish Airlines and

EGYPTAIR and with many of our other members

also offering connections to the Middle East.”

One reader wondered how service at London-

Heathrow would be affected after the sale of

British Midland International. Schwab responded,

“Star Alliance maintains a strong presence in the

UK even without bmi. We have 24 airlines flying

there with over 3,000 daily flights. The UK is

a very important market for us — in fact

we are currently working with BAA on

a whole new terminal for Star Alliance

at LHR.”

Another reader wanted to know

if technology could be created to

allow recognition of Gold or Silver

status at any lounge, simply by

showing a traveller’s frequent

flyer number. “Is it an

integrated system to

do the lookup or only

our card would identify

our status?”

In response, Schwab

noted, “Star Alliance

is continuing to work

on greater technical

integration among our members and this is

the kind of improvement we are looking to

implement.”

More than 200 comments came from customers

in the two hour-long sessions. Schwab was

pleased with the response, and plans to return to

Facebook for other forum events.

CEO Mark Schwab connects with customers on Facebook

On May 14, Star Alliance CEO Mark Schwab responded to customer concerns, comments and well wishes during two forum sessions on Star Alliance’s Facebook page throughout the anniversary day.

ne

two

rk 6

/12

8

EMPLOYEE MARKETPLACE IN SHANGHAI ATTRACTS MORE THAN 350

Timed to coincide with Star Alliance’s 15th

Anniversary, member carrier employees in

Shanghai gathered at an employee marketplace

to learn more about the Alliance and celebrate

the anniversary.

More than 360 employees from 12 airlines

and ground handling agents attended from

Air Canada, Air China, Air New Zealand, ANA,

Asiana, Lufthansa, SAS, Singapore, SWISS,

THAI, Turkish and United. As well, staff from EVA

Airways and Shenzhen Airlines — announced to

join the Alliance — attended.

Marketplaces are held at major airports at various

times throughout the year to help employees

learn more about the Alliance and their airline’s

role in making the Alliance a success.

Denver marketplace draws employees from four member carriers

At the end May, almost 700 employees from the four Star Alliance carriers in Denver attended a Marketplace. Air Canada, Lufthansa, United and US Airways employees learned more about the Alliance during the all-day event.

ne

two

rk 6

/12

9

When things go wrong on a

journey, it’s usually the airline’s

customer relations representatives

that hear about it. Effective handling

of a complaint – one that retains a

customer’s loyalty — is paramount.

“Breakdowns in communication

damage customer confidence

and are punished by the customer,

particularly in today’s environment

where bad experiences can be

shared quickly with thousands of

people using social media tools,”

noted Carina Roennfeld-Peters,

Director, Customer Relations &

Training. “That’s why we’ve developed

the Starquest tool — to help customer

relations departments at the airlines

quickly resolve issues when they

involve more than one Star Alliance

carrier.”

The Starquest tool — available

now to customer relations teams at

airlines — is a simple web-enabled

tool that is accessible anywhere

and allows customer relations

teams at more than one airline

to work more efficiently

together to resolve

customer problems.

The tool allows a

complaint’s details to be passed from

one airline to another, and to track

the responses, which are also made

within the tool. At the same time, the

tool provides data about the types of

complaints and the efficiency of the

handling process.

“We’ve always promoted the ‘we

get it, we fix it’ approach to handling

complaints,” said Roennfeld-Peters.

“That means the complaint-receiving

carrier is the primary handler and

is the one that responds to the

customer. Where multiple carriers

are involved, this can mean getting

in touch behind the scenes with

the other airline involved to get

extra information or, in some cases,

arrange compensation.

“We don’t want the complaint to

be passed along from one carrier

to another with no resolution. That

doesn’t help anyone. The Starquest

tool allows the complaint to be

handled by the first point of contact,

and monitored every step of the way

because the complaints are gathered

in one place rather than scattered

across various e-mail inboxes.”

In the first two weeks of operation,

about 400 files were opened in

Starquest, with more than 250 of

them closed shortly after when

complaints were resolved.

New tool helps customer relations teams work togethern

etw

ork

6/1

2

10

Star Alliance’s Learning Network has launched its

13th training module — this one about how Round

the World fares work.

“The Star Alliance Round the World ticket is a big hit

with customers. Of all of our special fare products, the

RTW fare is the most popular. But complexities in the

fare rules can make it hard for agents to book and sell

the product with confidence,” said Carina Roennfeld-

Peters, Director, Customer Relations & Training.

The launch of the Round The World Fare training

module introduces frontline ticketing staff and travel

agents to the basics of the product. The training

distinguishes the Star Alliance Round the World

Fare product from other round-the-world products

offered by other alliances. It provides learners with

a better understanding of the product rules, equips

them to sell a Round the World ticket and explain the

rules to customers.

The Star Alliance Round the World Fare training and

all of the other modules are available

through airline training

departments.

Along with the training module, Star Alliance is

planning an hour-long webinar to demonstrate the

booking process for the RTW Fare product in the

various GDSs.

The Star Alliance Learning Network was launched

a year ago. It comprises a growing set of training

courses that can help employees at the member

airlines better understand the Alliance and serve

customers better.

There are 13 e-learning modules, ranging from a

general introduction to the Alliance to training for

frontline staff on how to respond in an emergency.

The modules complement training offered by the

individual airlines, focusing on concepts that are

fundamental to the Alliance, such as the benefits and

experience delivered to holders of Star Alliance

Gold cards.

“The Learning Network helps ensure that

employees have a clear and consistent

understanding of what Star Alliance is all

about, and the benefits to customers,”

said Roennfeld-Peters. “That in turn

means that customers have a more

consistent Alliance experience

regardless of which individual

carriers they may fly with.”

New training module for handling Round the World fares n

etw

ork

6/1

2

11

TASK FORCE TO EXAMINE FUEL EFFICIENCYWith fuel costs a major expense for airlines, Star

Alliance’s Fuel Efficiency Task Force is making strides in

helping carriers find ways to save money.

At a meeting of 16 member airlines in May, the task force

has given member airlines the mandate to negotiate on

behalf of all Star Alliance members when discussing fuel

efficiency with their local air navigation service providers.

“Air Navigation authorities determine flight routings as

part of their mandate. If more efficient routings can be

agreed on with the airlines, the carriers will reap the

benefit by using less fuel,” noted Michael Muerwald,

Fleet Coordinator. “This will make it easier for member

airlines to get more fuel saving flight procedures

approved in air traffic management because of better

negotiating power.”

The task force also exchanged the fuel policies of all 25

member airlines, which enables them to see at a glance

how each member’s fuel planning compares to other

airlines. “This will have the effect that operators who feel

that their authorities require them to plan their flights with

too much fuel reserves will now have better arguments

to convince them to approve more fuel efficient flight

plans, which are already proven in other members’

operations,” said Muerwald. “Carrying extra fuel that isn’t

really necessary to maintain safety guidelines is a waste,

not only because of the extra fuel cost but also the weight

the aircraft must carry. If we can reach a consensus with

authorities on what constitutes reasonable fuel reserves,

it will benefit the member carriers.

New checkin kiosk tested in Munich

Star Alliance, in conjunction with the

Kempinski Hotel at Munich Airport is

testing a new application for a kiosk,

which is situated in the lobby of the

hotel.

“Customer surveys have

repeatedly found that any

opportunity a customer has to speed

the airport experience is a benefit we

should focus on,” said Anita Elste,

Manager, Products & Services. “An

off-site checkin kiosk that allows

customers to check in on one of

several airlines at their leisure is one

of those advantages that customers

appreciate.”

A customer who

doesn’t have a mobile

phone, or prefers not to

use the hotel Internet

can check in for a flight

as they check out of

the hotel on their way

to the airport. The

Kempinski is providing

space for the kiosk, and

the Alliance is providing

the technology. The

project is a pilot to

ensure the functionality

works as expected, and

that customers find the

service useful.

“We will test the kiosk for several

months and make any adjustments

we find necessary. If we find that

customers appreciate the service,

we will certainly keep the kiosk at the

Kempinski and then look to expand

the kiosk project to other airports,”

noted Elste.

She said that Star Alliance-branded

kiosks are generally placed at

airports where carriers are physically

located together. In this case, a

collaboration between Star Alliance

and the Kempinski allows costs to be

shared and provides an opportunity

to market the Alliance through kiosk

signage. “If successful, we would like

to take this to more hotels around

the world.”

ne

two

rk 6

/12

12

Air Canada is flying daily seasonal flights between St. John’s, Newfoundland and London Heathrow. Air Canada will operate the flights until September 30.

Air Canada

ANA announced a company split and will restructure as it deals with a more competitive environment. All business — except control or supervision of companies in which shares are held — will be transferred to ANA Holdings, a wholly owned subsidiary of All Nippon Airways Co. Ltd.

ANA

Blue1 is renewing the cabin interior of its Boeing 717 fleet with new leather seats, interior materials and lighting. The modernisation is part of Blue1’s new in-flight concept and service design.

Blue1

LOT has launched an ad campaign to present the company’s rejuvenated brand image. The theme “LOT — Our horizon is the future” ties in with the changes the carrier has made to prepare for the arrival of the B787 Dreamliner.

LOT

Bits and bites from the member carriersFor more information visit the employee site at http://www.starallianceemployees.com/news/member-airline-news.html

Lufthansa’s new first and business classes took off on an A330-300 from Munich to Washington, DC. Each seat can fold flat to create a lie-flat bed nearly two metres long.

Lufthansa

Air New Zealand will add capacity to its Auckland - Honolulu route October through March. The airline will add a third weekly Boeing 767-300 increasing the number of seats available by 50%.

Air New Zealand

Asiana is flying to Honolulu from Seoul twice a week, moving to daily in July.

Asiana

Ethiopian Airlines will start flying from Addis Ababa to Toronto July 16. The flight will be the only regularly scheduled non-stop flight from Toronto to Africa, and will operate with B777-200LR aircraft.

Ethiopian Airlines

ne

two

rk 6

/12

13

TAP has added a booking engine that can be used with smartphones and tablets to the services already available for mobile devices.

TAP

SAS and Singapore Airlines signed a joint venture agreement that allows the two carriers to plan further business opportuni-ties within the partnership, such as the co-ordination of flight schedules and joint sales activities, subject to regulatory approval.

SAS & Singapore Airlines

Turkish Airlines and JetBlue have signed an interline agreement to connect the carriers’ networks at New York’s John F. Kennedy (JFK) and Washington Dulles (IAD). Turkish has also signed an agreement with Air Canada for access to destinations beyond Toronto.

Turkish Airlines

United Airlines plans to begin daily flights between Denver and Tokyo Narita next March, subject to government approval. Eastbound flights from Tokyo are to begin April 1 using B787 Dreamliner aircraft.

United Airlines

EVA Air has unveiled a new-generation business cabin named Royal Laurel Class. The airline is investing US$100 million to upgrade the top cabins on all of its Boeing 777-300ERs with new, fully lie-flat seats. Details can be found at http://royallaurel.evaair.com/en/.

EVA Air

network

Produced monthly for the employees of Star Alliance member carriers.

Star Alliance Services GmbH,Frankfurt Airport Centre, Main LobbyD-60546 Frankfurt∕Main

Vice-President, Corporate Office: Christian Klick

Director, Internal Communication: Janet Northcote; janet.northcote@staralliance.com

Editor: Garry Bridgewater, Sherana Productionssheranaproductions@googlemail.com

Layout: Rachel Niebergal, Peridot Design Inc.rniebergal@gmail.com

Photos: Jens Goerlich, Daniel R. Carneiro, Member carrier employees

SOON TO JOIN

Bits and bites from the member carriersFor more information visit the employee site at http://www.starallianceemployees.com/news/member-airline-news.html

ne

two

rk 6

/12

14

A snapshot of the 25 Star Alliance members

Total revenue ($US) $160.9 billion* Airports served 1,293Annual passengers 648.8 million Fleet 4,256Daily departures 20,500 Lounges more than 950Number of Employees 411,218 Countries served 190

* all figures as of April, 2012

Star Alliance Member Carriers Fleet Number of Major hub size employees airports

SOON TO JOIN

Adria Airways (JP) Ljubljana

Aegean Airlines (A3) Athens, Heraklion, Larnaca Rhodes, Thessaloniki

Air Canada (AC) Calgary, Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver

Air China (CA) Beijing, Chengdu, Shanghai

Air New Zealand (NZ) Auckland, Hong Kong, Los Angeles

ANA (NH) Haneda, Osaka, Tokyo

Asiana Airlines (OZ) Seoul Incheon, Seoul Gimpo

Austrian (OS) Vienna

Blue1 (KF) Helsinki

Brussels Airlines (SN) Brussels

Croatia Airlines (OU) Zagreb

EGYPTAIR (MS) Cairo

Ethiopian Airlines (ET) Addis Ababa, Lome

LOT Polish Airlines (LO) Warsaw

Lufthansa (LH) Frankfurt, Munich

Scandinavian Airlines (SK) Copenhagen, Oslo, Stockholm

Singapore Airlines (SQ) Singapore Changi

South African Airways (SA) Johannesburg

SWISS (LX) Zurich

TAM (JJ) Brasilia, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo

TAP Portugal (TP) Lisbon, Porto

Thai Airways Intl (TG) Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Hat Yai, Phuket

Turkish Airlines (TK) Ankara, Istanbul

United (UA) Chicago, Cleveland, Denver, Guam, Houston, Los Angeles, New York (Newark), San Francisco, Tokyo (Narita), Washington (Dulles)

US Airways (US) Charlotte, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., Phoenix

Avianca, Taca Airlines (AVTA) Bogota, Lima, San Salvador, San Jose

Copa Airlines (CM) Panama City

EVA Air (BR) Taipei

Shenzhen Airlines (ZH) Shenzhen

14

29

352

288

102

232

71

81

9

51

13

79

48

54

355

136

104

49

90

156

71

91

179

1,262

340

150

60

59

100

452

1,615

26,000

24,474

10,800

33,183

9,041

6,000

350

3,300

1,095

7,500

5,635

2,887

39,938

12,833

13,929

9,223

7,644

29,700

7,055

24,563

15,599

86,402

32,000

12,000

4,772

5,489

8,000

ne

two

rk 6

/12

15