Treasury Ministry: LOT might join OneWorld alliance

According to the Treasury Ministry press office, a meeting between British Airways and LOT representatives could lead to Poland's entry into the OneWorld airline alliance. The head of British Airways' airline alliances department, Michael Jackson, met yesterday with Treasury Minister Wieslaw Kaczmarek and the management board of flagship carrier LOT Polish Airlines. The meeting covered subjects such as strengthening the Polish airline and the possible entry of LOT into the OneWorld airline alliance, headed by British Airways. According to British representatives, the talks focused on code share, meaning a common reservations system. The visit came after an earlier one made by Lufthansa President Juergen Weber. The Polish government has been searching for an investor to purchase a 21.5% stake in LOT belonging to nearly-bankrupt Swissair. At the same time it was announced that LOT plans to purchase shares of subsidiary EuroLOT, worth zl. 105 million, by the end of April. The airline will cover the share issue by a contribution in kind, transferring ownership rights to eight ATR-72 airplanes used by EuroLOT. (Rzeczpospolita, p. B3; Puls Biznesu, p. 4) P.W.