Alliances as a Coopetitive Strategy of the Airlines: The Case of Iberia (1980–2020)

Abstract

Alliances between companies are an example of a collaborative strategy adopted in anticipation of highly uncertain markets. Since 1980, the commercial airline industry has been affected by a progressive liberalization worldwide. In this historical context, most airlines reacted with defensive movements in the face of high competition. In the case of airlines in the Spanish market, one of the largest in the world due to the weight of the tourism sector in its economy, airlines responded in various ways to the intensification of competition. Iberia, the main Spanish airline, established different defensive alliance policies. In the 1980s, alliances were mainly collaborative. Since 1998, airline alliances have become coopetitive in nature, as was the case with the creation of One World group (American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Qantas and Iberia). The partners began to interact in a more horizontal way, maintaining various agreements (code-sharing, handling, schedule coordination, shared sales, fleet maintenance) without renouncing their independence in the face of global competition. Iberia has subsequently modified the composition of its portfolio to move towards a more vertical collaboration with the integration into the IAG Group (Iberia, British Airways, Air Lingus and Vueling). This second phase is a quest to increase market power with deep changes in the nature of its alliances while maintaining coopetitive alliances.

Citation

Olivares, J.V. (2023), "Alliances as a Coopetitive Strategy of the Airlines: The Case of Iberia (1980–2020)", Fernández Pérez, P. and San Román, E. (Ed.) Collective Entrepreneurship in the Contemporary European Services Industries: A Long Term Approach (Frontiers of Management History), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 77-93. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-80117-950-820231006