India’s leading domestic carrier and only five-star airline, Kingfisher Airlines, is lining up to join oneworld® after signing a memorandum of understanding as its first step towards full membership of the airline alliance, subject to Indian regulatory approval.

The agreement was concluded at a meeting between Kingfisher Airlines’ Chairman Vijay Mallya and Chief Executives from oneworld’s 11 existing member airlines, which include some of the best and biggest names in the industry.

A target date for Kingfisher Airlines to join the alliance will be confirmed once this approval is gained. The process to bring any airline on board normally takes around 18 months to complete, so Kingfisher Airlines could be expected to start flying as part of oneworld during 2011.

Kingfisher Airlines’ addition to oneworld will link India’s extensive domestic network (58 Indian cities) with oneworld’s unrivalled global network – the only alliance with airlines based on every continent.