Skip to Main Content
HBS Home
  • About
  • Academic Programs
  • Alumni
  • Faculty & Research
  • Baker Library
  • Giving
  • Harvard Business Review
  • Initiatives
  • News
  • Recruit
  • Map / Directions
Faculty & Research
  • Faculty
  • Research
  • Featured Topics
  • Academic Units
  • …→
  • Harvard Business School→
  • Faculty & Research→
Publications
Publications
  • July 1996 (Revised January 1997)
  • Case
  • HBS Case Collection

Northwest Airlines: Strategic Alliance and Strategic Position--May 1996

By: Leonard A. Schlesinger and Davis Dyer
  • Format:Print
  • | Pages:29
ShareBar

Abstract

Describes the strategic position of Northwest Airlines in 1996 and discusses its financial rebound and changes and improvements since the 1993 restructuring agreement. Describes the company's new strategy and its management of principal strategic assets, focusing at length on the strategic alliance between Northwest and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines. Describes how the alliance was formed, how it obtained antitrust immunity from the U.S. Department of Transportation, and how that ruling facilitated operating cooperation between the two partners. Concludes by considering strains in the alliance and the impact of competitive alliances formed in 1996 by leading U.S. and European airlines.

Keywords

Air Transportation; Restructuring; Alliances; Competitive Strategy; Government Administration; Cooperation; Business Strategy; Air Transportation Industry; United States; Netherlands

Citation

Schlesinger, Leonard A., and Davis Dyer. "Northwest Airlines: Strategic Alliance and Strategic Position--May 1996." Harvard Business School Case 897-034, July 1996. (Revised January 1997.)
  • Find it at Harvard

About The Author

Leonard A. Schlesinger

General Management
→More Publications

More from the Authors

    • May 2025
    • Faculty Research

    Fidji Simo: Growing the Pie at Instacart

    By: Hubert Joly, Leonard A. Schlesinger and James Barnett
    • April 2025
    • Faculty Research

    Thrivent: From Insurance Agents to Financial Advisors

    By: Hubert Joly, Leonard A. Schlesinger and Tom Quinn
    • May 2024
    • Faculty Research

    The Meteoric Rise of Skims

    By: Ayelet Israeli, Jill Avery and Leonard A. Schlesinger
More from the Authors
  • Fidji Simo: Growing the Pie at Instacart By: Hubert Joly, Leonard A. Schlesinger and James Barnett
  • Thrivent: From Insurance Agents to Financial Advisors By: Hubert Joly, Leonard A. Schlesinger and Tom Quinn
  • The Meteoric Rise of Skims By: Ayelet Israeli, Jill Avery and Leonard A. Schlesinger
ǁ
Campus Map
Harvard Business School
Soldiers Field
Boston, MA 02163
→Map & Directions
→More Contact Information
  • Make a Gift
  • Site Map
  • Jobs
  • Harvard University
  • Trademarks
  • Policies
  • Accessibility
  • Digital Accessibility
Copyright © President & Fellows of Harvard College.