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KLM hints at alliance
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February 7, 2001: 8:06 a.m. ET
CEO Van Wijk won't rule out alliance talks with Alitalia, sees airline mergers
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LONDON (CNN) - KLM said on Wednesday it plans to forge ahead with alliances, as the airline industry slims down dramatically in the next few years.
The carrier's chief executive Leo Van Wijk told CNN that the company expects there will be "between three to five global airlines in the next few years," meaning "Europe's 20 flag-carriers would have to consolidate."
Wijk did not rule out reopening talks with Italian flag carrier Alitalia. "We're keeping all options open. I don't rule out that we will have discussions with Alitalia again."
KLM has made several stabs at finding an international partner in the airline business. The Dutch airline has a long-term U.S. ally in the form of Northwest Airlines (NWAC: Research, Estimates).
KLM, Europe's fourth-largest airline, pulled out of an alliance with Alitalia in April 2000 after the companies failed to come up with a definitive agreement.
The departure last week of Alitalia's Chief Executive Domenico Cempella has led to reports that the partnership formed in 1998 may be back on the drawing board.
After ending its alliance with the Italian carrier, still majority-owned by the state, KLM began merger talks with British Airways, Europe's biggest airline. Those talks dissolved in September with no agreement after disputes arose about KLM's stake in the new company.
A deal between the firms would have created the world's second-largest carrier but would have run into with strong resistance from regulators on both sides of the Atlantic. 
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