The stakes are getting even higher in the bid by U.S. carriers to woo Japan Airlines.
On Wednesday, Delta and its SkyTeam partners proposed a $1.02 billion funding package to help prop up the troubled Asian carrier and lure it away from American Airlines and the Oneworld alliance.
The SkyTeam proposal includes $500 million in equity, a $300 million revenue guarantee from Delta, another $200 million in asset-backed funding and $20 million or more in alliance-transition costs.
The deal comes on the heels of American’s offer to broker a deal for TPG to invest in JAL. American contends JAL would lose $500 in revenue by switching alliances.
Delta hopes to offset some of the lost revenue with its latest offer. Delta spokeswoman Betsy Talton said the Japanese carrier would stand to earn even more money by joining the larger SkyTeam alliance by connecting with a more far-reaching air network.
SkyTeam and Oneworld see JAL an important partner in gaining or retaining Asian presence and market share.
Having JAL in an alliance also promises to play a large part in any antitrust discussions once U.S. and Japanese aviation officials hammer out an open-skies agreement, expected by the end of the year.
JAL President Haruka Nishimatsu said last week it looks more "natural" at the moment to stay with Oneworld. Of more immediate concern, though, is the financial state of the airline.
JAL reported a quarterly loss last week of about $357 million for the period between July and September after showing a profit of about $447 million for the same period last year.
The carrier is carrying $15 billion in debt and seeking its fourth state bailout this decade. A government-led task force is formulating a plan to restructure the airline.
