ABSTRACT
Airline alliance evolution has been influenced by, and has itself had an impact on, the course of deregulation in many domestic markets and regional blocs, much as it has both felt the effects of and contributed towards the gradual liberalization and relaxation of the international air transport industry. Together, intergovernmental agreements and inter-firm strategies have created a new environment that is offering new opportunities and challenges and have paved the way towards the much-awaited and needed consolidation of the air transport industry in the form of cross-border mergers.
