Singapore Airlines and Virgin Australia recently announced that they have entered into a long-term partnership agreement, which will enable both the airlines to codeshare on each other’s domestic and international flights.

Besides codesharing each other’s flights, the two airlines will also provide lounge access and frequent flyer program benefits to the passengers. The other terms of the agreement includes coordinating schedules between Singapore and Australia and beyond to provide easy, smooth connections; and jointly conduct marketing, distribution and sales activities.

The agreement will benefit both the airlines as it will be connecting Virgin Australia’s wide range of Pacific and Australian destinations with the extensive international network of Singapore Airlines.   

With this alliance, the customers of Virgin Australia will have access to 70 additional destinations through the network of Singapore Airlines. On the other hand, the customers of Singapore Airlines will gain access to 30 additional destinations.

Under the agreement, the Velocity members of Virgin Australia’s frequent flyer program will be able to earn and redeem miles when traveling on Singapore Airlines-operated flights. Whereas, the members of Singapore Airlines’ KrisFlyer frequent flyer program will gain by earning and redeeming miles when taking Virgin Australia flights.

The two airlines will be approaching the concerned regulatory authorities, and will submit an application seeking approval to enable them to cooperate with each other on various commercial issues.

Goh Choon Phong, CEO of Singapore Airlines, said that the airline is committed to the Australian market for above 40 years. After the partnership receives regulatory approval by the authorities it will enable the airline to offer more services and choices for international and domestic travelers.

Phong further said that the Singapore Airlines will get a great opportunity with this partnership to drive growth with a consistent focus on network connectivity, product innovation and service excellence. Besides, this partnership will greatly enhance the appeal of Australia as an attractive travel destination while simultaneously opening up new avenues for Australian travelers.