Thursday, January 5, 2012

TAM Airlines and Turkish Airlines sign codeshare agreement


São Paulo, Brazil - TAM Airlines and Turkish Airlines, both members of the Star Alliance, have entered into a codeshare agreement that once in operation will increase the destinations on offer for their respective clients who travel from or to South America and Europe. With the bilateral agreement, each of the airlines can sell seats on certain designated flights operated by the partnership.
Initially TAM customers can purchase tickets for Istanbul directly from TAM. Turkish Airline clients, on the other hand, will be able to book flights operated by TAM to Brazilian destinations such as São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Brasília, Porto Alegre and Foz do Iguaçu; and also to Buenos Aires in Argentina.
The destinations will be available for booking and purchase on the companies’ respective websites following the final approval of the aviation authorities in Brazil and Turkey. Currently, TAM’s own network offers 43 destinations in Brazil and 19 in Latin America, Europe and the United States – in addition the airline offers a further 92 international destinations through codeshare agreements.
When the codeshare agreement goes into effect, the partnership will allow TAM customers to travel directly between São Paulo and Istanbul on a flight operated by Turkish Airlines. In addition, it will also be possible to travel to-and-from Istanbul and São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, via London. Another option will be the route between São Paulo and Istanbul, via Madrid.