Press Release 2001

First Star Alliance lounge opened at Zurich airport
 
Star Alliance, the airline network for Earth, today officially inaugurated its first lounge in an exclusive Star Alliance design at Zurich International Airport.

The 637-square meter facility is a prototype for future Star Alliance lounges that the global airline partnership plans to open at a number of airports within its extensive route network. Projects currently being evaluated include Brussels, Buenos Aires, Terminal 4 at Los Angeles International Airport and Manila.

The Star Alliance lounge in Zurich has been designed by Toronto architects Kuwabara, Payne, McKenna, Blumberg – KPMB, who entered the winning concept in an international competition. Their design concept not only encompasses this lounge, but all airport related Star Alliance facilities such as dedicated Star Alliance check-in and sales counters, transfer facilities and baggage service facilities which will also be implemented at other airports.

The lounge, which welcomes Star Alliance First and Business Class passengers and Star Alliance Gold members, „soft-opened“ in early July. Customer feedback about its functionality and comfort has been very positive. Situated in Terminal B of Zurich International Airport, it has a seating capacity of 30 in the First Class section and 130 in the Business Class area. It provides comfortable space and a pleasant and relaxing atmosphere for premium customers holding a ticket on any one of the six alliance airlines which operate from the Swiss airport: Air Canada, Austrian Airlines, Lufthansa German Airlines, SAS Scandinavian Airlines, Singapore Airlines and Thai Airways International.

Together, the Star Alliance carriers offer 36 daily departures out of Zurich.

The reception area of the lounge features a full wall image of the earth. The architects have made extensive use of natural stone and wood in their design, in particular walnut and birch, as well as woven metal screens.  The concept is that of an urban garden. For some customers, the lounge can be a place of calm in a busy airport where they can rest, relax and recharge. For others, it will be a place of ongoing business where they can work and stay in touch with the world. The lounge seating is comfortable, casual and elegant and offers a mix of high-quality classic and contemporary Italian furniture design.
 
A separate section of the business class area is reserved for workstation desks equipped with internet connections, telephones and fax machines. 

Star Alliance elite-status customers already have access to more than 550 airport lounges worldwide, from San Francisco in the west to Seoul in the east, from Helsinki in the north to Christchurch in the south. No other airline alliance can claim this number of lounges.

The Star Alliance lounges will benefit those markets where the alliance is not represented by a home carrier. In some of these markets individual Star Alliance carriers do not generate enough traffic to warrant their own lounge facilities, and a common Star Alliance lounge is the obvious solution to ensure that customers receive a consistent high-quality product.

Star Alliance was established in May, 1997. It groups several of the world’s leading airlines in a partnership designed to provide customers the benefits of global reach and a smooth travel experience. The member airlines are Air Canada, Air New Zealand, ANA – All Nippon Airways, Ansett Australia, Austrian Airlines, bmi british midland, Lauda Air, Lufthansa German Airlines, Mexicana Airlines, SAS Scandinavian Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Thai Airways International, Tyrolean Airways, United Airlines and Varig Brazilian Airlines.

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