If you found yourself here, you probably already know that Star Alliance is the world’s largest airline alliance. Having been founded in May 1997, not only does it transport more passengers and serve more airports than oneworld and SkyTeam but it is also older than the two.
Among other things, Star Alliance member airlines’ frequent flyers can enjoy benefits across the alliance thanks to Star Alliance Silver and Star Alliance Gold statuses.
Currently, Star Alliance has 26 full members – five of those founded the alliance while the rest joined the alliance later. Another dozen or so airlines were part of the alliance in the past but are not anymore, primarily due to going out of business or merging with another airline.

Star Alliance Boasts 26 Airlines Across All Inhabited Continents
When Star Alliance was founded on May 14, 1997, it had only five airlines – Air Canada and United Airlines in North America, Lufthansa and Scandinavian Airlines in Europe, and Thai Airways in Asia. These five founding members are still part of Star Alliance (although Scandinavian Airlines has announced plans to leave the alliance). Since then, however, the alliance has also expanded considerably.
Today, Star Alliance consists of 26 airlines including 3 from Africa, 8 from Asia, 10 from Europe, 4 from the Americas, and 1 from New Zealand. Air India is the most recent airline to have joined the alliance and still be in it. The Indian flag carrier joined the alliance in July 2014.


Below is a complete list of all current Star Alliance airlines including their date of joining, the countries and regions they are from, and their frequent flyer programs:
Airline | Joined | Continent | Country | Frequent Flyer Program |
---|---|---|---|---|
Aegean Airlines | 2010-06-30 | Europe | Greece | Miles + Bonus |
Air Canada | 1997-05-14 | North America | Canada | Aeroplan |
Air China | 2007-12-12 | Asia | China | Phoenix Miles |
Air India | 2014-07-11 | Asia | India | Flying Returns |
Air New Zealand | 1999-05-03 | Australia and Oceania | New Zealand | AirPoints |
All Nippon Airways | 1999-10-15 | Asia | Japan | Mileage Plan |
Asiana Airlines | 2003-03-28 | Asia | South Korea | Asiana Club |
Austrian Airlines | 2000-03-26 | Europe | Austria | Miles & More |
Avianca | 2012-06-21 | South America | Colombia | LifeMiles |
Brussels Airlines | 2009-12-09 | Europe | Belgium | Miles & More |
Copa Airlines | 2012-06-21 | North America | Panama | Connect Miles |
Croatia Airlines | 2004-11-18 | Europe | Croatia | Miles & More |
Egyptair | 2008-07-11 | Africa | Egypt | Egyptair Plus |
Ethiopian Airlines | 2011-12-13 | Africa | Ethiopia | ShebaMiles |
EVA Air | 2013-06-18 | Asia | Taiwan | Infinity MileageLands |
LOT Polish Airlines | 2003-10-26 | Europe | Poland | Miles & More |
Lufthansa | 1997-05-14 | Europe | Germany | Miles & More |
Scandinavian Airlines | 1997-05-14 | Europe | Denmark/Norway/Sweden | Miles & More |
Shenzhen Airlines | 2012-11-29 | Asia | China | Phoenix Miles |
Singapore Airlines | 2000-04-01 | Asia | Singapore | KrisFlyer |
South African Airways | 2006-04-10 | Africa | South Africa | Voyager |
Swiss International Air Lines | 2006-04-01 | Europe | Switzerland | Miles & More |
TAP Air Portugal | 2005-03-14 | Europe | Portugal | Miles&Go |
Thai Airways International | 1997-05-14 | Asia | Thailand | Royal Orchid Plus |
Turkish Airlines | 2008-04-01 | Europe | Turkey | Miles&Smiles |
United Airlines | 1997-05-14 | North America | United States | MileagePlus |
13 Other Airlines Were Part of Star Alliance in the Past
In addition to the 26 airlines that are currently Star Alliance members, 13 airlines were members of the alliance in the past but are not anymore. The vast majority of these airlines simply went out of business (e.g. Spanair and VARIG) or merged with an airline belonging to a different alliance (e.g. US Airways and TAM).
The biggest losses for the alliance in terms of geographic coverage were, perhaps:
- Ansett Australia, which left the alliance in 2001, shortly before going out of business in 2002, and cost the alliance a presence in Australia
- British Midland, which was the only British airline in the alliance
- VARIG, TAM Airlines, and Avianca Brasil, all of which provided at some point the alliance with a presence in Brazil

Below is a complete list of all airlines that once belonged to Star Alliance but are no longer members, as well as the date they left the alliance and the reason they did so:
Airline | Joined | Exited | Reason |
---|---|---|---|
Adria Airways | 2004-11-18 | 2019-09-30 | Ceased operations |
Ansett Australia | 1999-05-03 | 2001-09-12 | Financial difficulties |
Avianca Brasil | 2015-07-22 | 2019-08-31 | Ceased operations |
Blue1 | 2004-11-03 | 2012-11-01 | Scandinavian Airlines took over operations |
British Midland International | 2000-07-01 | 2012-04-20 | Merged with British Airways |
Continental Airlines | 2009-10-27 | 2012-03-03 | Merged with United Airlines |
Mexicana | 2000-07-01 | 2004-03-31 | Started codesharing with American Airlines instead of United Airlines |
Shanghai Airlines | 2007-12-12 | 2010-10-31 | Merged with China Eastern Airlines |
Spanair | 2003-05-01 | 2012-01-27 | Ceased operations |
TACA Airlines | 2012-06-21 | 2013-05-27 | Merged with Avianca |
TAM Airlines | 2010-05-13 | 2014-03-30 | Merged with LAN Airlines |
US Airways | 2004-05-04 | 2014-03-30 | Merged with American Airlines |
VARIG | 1997-10-22 | 2007-01-31 | Ceased operations |
Star Alliance Also Partners with Other (Not Only) Airlines
The 26 current and 13 past Star Alliance airlines mentioned above are full members – airlines that offer full perks to Star Alliance frequent flyers holding Silver/Gold statuses, etc. That said, quite a few other airlines are affiliated with the alliance in one way or another too. There are two main categories of such airlines.
First, there are affiliates of Star Alliance member airlines. While these airlines are not members of Star Alliance directly, they operate flights on behalf of Star Alliance member airlines or are otherwise related to them. When flying on these airlines, passengers with a Star Alliance status might have access to some or all the perks they would have when flying on a Star Alliance airline.
Examples of affiliates of Star Alliance airlines include Lufthansa CityLine which operates some of Lufthansa’s flights, ANA Wings which operates some of ANA’s flights, and Swiss’s subsidiary Edelweiss.
In the former two cases, the flights are operated under ANA’s flight numbers so passengers can enjoy regular Star Alliance status perks. In the case of Edelweiss, the flights are operated under Edelweiss’s code so passengers cannot enjoy Star Alliance status perks.

Second, there are Star Alliance Connecting Partners. Currently, there are only two of those – Juneyao Airlines in China and THAI Smile in Thailand.
While these are not full members, they are integrated with other Star Alliance carriers to an extent and offer perks to Star Alliance Gold and Silver members.

In addition to airlines, in 2022, Deutsche Bahn – Germany’s railway company – became Star Alliance’s first Intermodal Partner. As part of the partnership, passengers can book flight tickets with train tickets included and those traveling in business or first class can the DB Lounge at Frankfurt Airport.
Summary
Star Alliance was originally founded in 1997 by five airlines including United Airlines, Air Canada, Scandinavian Airlines, Lufthansa, and Thai Airways. Today, the alliance has 26 full member airlines in total including all five original founding members.
Over the years, Star Alliance has also seen some members leave the alliance. When that happened, it was mostly due to two reasons – the member going out of business or merging with an airline belonging to a different alliance.