American Airlines announced a new deal Monday with Hong Kong-based Cathay Dragon Airlines that will give fliers access to southeast Asian hot spots such as Phuket, Thailand and Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Through its Oneworld Alliance, American Airlines fliers will now get flights through Hong Kong on Cathay Dragon to Dhaka, Bangladesh (DAC); Chiang Mai, Thailand (CNX); Da Nang, Vietnam (DAD); and the resort region of Phuket, Thailand.
American's network will also now have more frequent flights to Pe Nang, Malaysia; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; and Hanoi, Vietnam.
It strengthens American and Oneworld's ties to Asia, the fast-growing airline region where Oneworld is fighting for market share with Sky Team and Delta Air Lines.
The codeshare will impact fliers going through Hong Kong International Airport (HKG), where Cathay Dragon is based. The Fort Worth-based airline flies directly to Hong Kong daily from Dallas-Fort Worth, Chicago, Los Angeles and New York.
Cathay Dragon, formerly known as Dragonair, is a subsidiary of Cathay Pacific, a longtime partner of American Airlines.
Codeshares are agreements that allow passengers to use a series of partner carriers to fly to international destinations, but still book through a single airline.
The new codeshare deal could also give more route options to Asian destinations. For example, American's flights to Hanoi, Vietnam were previously only routed through Tokyo.
