Andrea Utz

Lufthansa's Strategic Challenges when a Star Alliance Member Exits Andrea Utz

Publisher Marketing: Bachelor Thesis from the year 2013 in the subject Business economics - Business Management, Corporate Governance, grade: 1,9, language: English, abstract: The airline sector is a viable and fast changing industry. This became evident especially after the announcement of the fusion between the insolvent company American Airlines and US Airways in February 2013. This begs for the question, how Lufthansa will be affected, as a member of Star Alliance, after the exit of US Airways. The thesis will analyse Lufthansa's competitive advantage within the dynamic airline industry based on a strategic analysis of its internal and external environment. Furthermore, with the help of a scenario analysis, potential future situations will be examined and underlined by a management interview given by a CEO from the airline industry. Summing up, even if US Airways exited Star Alliance, it has no substantial influence on the competitive advantage of Lufthansa as a member of Star Alliance. The study concludes it is very important to find a new partner in order to gain access to the growing emerging markets especially in the Middle East where demand and hubs will grow significantly over the next decades.