Oneworld-bound SriLankan Airlines believes it is on track to join the global alliance grouping by the middle of next year as it reports progress on aligning its IT processes with its new partners.

The Sri Lankan carrier was invited to join Oneworld last June and speaking in London during the World Travel Market exhibition, chairman Nishantha Wickremasinghe said it was ahead of target.

"We are going through a process to make our systems compatible with other members," he said. "Normally this takes a year. I am proud to say this will be completed in record time and we will be a fully-fledged member of Oneworld mid-next year.

"We are a small airline having 23 aircraft, maybe 30 the year after next," he says, "but we will be present across the world through our Oneworld connectivity."

Malaysian Airlines recently said it was set to join Oneworld in February, while Qatar Airways is set to follow suit in the next 18 months.

Source: Air Transport Intelligence news