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Marketing, publicity and corporate image in sector: , Airlines of , 1941-2000.1

JAVIER VIDAL Universidad de [email protected]

The airlines are companies that have had from their origins a very wide, national and international market. When “flag airlines” had their protected national markets and guaranteed the monopoly of the bilateral air relationships, the companies hardly used the marketing and the publicity to be able to increase their traffics. Between 1945 up to 1987, most of them enjoyed little competition2. However it does not mean not to be subjected to the normal pressure of an to win traffics. Between 1945 and 1960 flag airlines like Iberia hardly moved in a competitive market in spite of the quick growth of passengers demand. From 1960 the situation changed. The strong impulse of the tourism and the introduction of jets airliners and the new airplanes of wide body caused a substantial change in the airlines market. The market was enlarged quickly with a new increase of traffics. It was in this period when Iberia increased its resources dedicated to the publicity. At the same time it also varied their corporate image. Iberia grew in size and ended up having at the beginning of the years 1970 a very good position among the big European companies.

From 1974 Iberia increased its resources dedicated to the publicity to counteract the problems of passengers' relative decrease for increment of the competition. Starting from then the company had to maintain a continuous effort to open new routes and increasing traffics. The advertising campaigns happened unceasingly. From 1978 the corporate image was changed and began on the way to facing the liberalization of the markets. The decade of 1980 and 1990 were years of very quick changes in those that the traditional identity of Iberia and their markets were subjected to continuous changes.

This paper tries to explain the central elements of the behaviour of Iberia in each one of the periods of its commercial history through its campaigns of publicity and marketing and of its corporate image. Our conclusions show that the company had three important geographical markets: Europe, Spain and America. In each one of the chronological periods Iberia went to these markets impacting in the characteristics of the demand and trying to explain their offer through different channels. The resources dedicated to marketing and publicity were growing. They impacted in different topics depending from the offer of Iberia and the demand. The topics varied as they were changing the preferences of the passengers and internal changes of Iberia as corporative culture. From very early Iberia internationalized their advertising campaigns what transformed it into a pioneer company in Spain in the use of the modern marketing techniques.

1 This text is part of a research about Iberia, Airlines of Spain, that will be published by Lid Empresarial, , 2005. 2 R. Doganis (1991, 2001) M. Staniland (2003)

1

Hard competition and the changes happened in the markets from 1960 took Iberia to begin to worry about their corporate image. From 1978 it modified their external image in a significant way. It was justified by the political changes that took place in Spain. The recovery of the democratic system and the return of the Monarchy impelled the image changes that were expressed in a new logo and changes in the painting in the fuselage of the airplanes. Starting from these years Iberia was debated in a very competitive market that forced to its organizational structure to increase its resources in publicity and marketing. In this point the Spanish airline looked for to consolidate its traditional markets of Europe and Latin America and to get ready for the liberalization of the international markets being centred in those demand segments that it could be competitive. From 1996 and until the of the company, Iberia experienced an increase of the resources in publicity and corporate image that have contributed significantly to the benefits that the airline has obtained in the last nine years.

1. Iberia. The first decades of the company, 1940-1960

Iberia was born as private company in 1927. After some years of activity the airline was integrated in 1931 in a company of public capital denominated CLASSA. With the , Iberia flew again with the support of the Franco faction and technological resources of , through the agreements carried out with . When concluding the Spanish Civil War Iberia was nationalized and after the exit of the German interests, it was integrated in 1944 in the National Institute of Industry -INI- a holding of public capital controlled by the Spanish State.

The incorporation of Iberia to the Spanish State was made granting to the airline the monopoly of the air and the consideration of flag airline for the operations of international transports. With this premise Iberia started its commercial flights network in the peninsula, considering the whole national market that included the Balearic Islands, Canaries, the possessions of the north of Africa, Western Sahara and the colony of .

During 1940 Iberia used relatively little publicity to promote its product. The economic situation of the country was disastrous with low income levels per capita, below the that had reached in 1930. The restrictions to the imports and the shortage of fuel that characterized the economy of the first period of Franco’s dictatorship also affected the Iberia offer. The situation of international political isolation of Franco up to 1950 confined the advertising action from Iberia to the Spanish and Latin America market. In this last one the reasons that prevailed were those of the prestige and the interest to show that the Franco regime had supports from the other side of the Atlantic, especially from the Argentinean regime with Juan Domingo Perón3. The establishment of the flight between Madrid and in 1946 opened a step to the establishment of connections with Latin America. This continent passed to become the preferable destination of Iberia. It obeyed it two reasons. The recovery of the idea of the old Spanish Empire that was very pleasing to Franco's regime and the objective of getting in a direct connection with the . For Franco's regime the supports coming from Latin American was basic taking in to account the isolation of their regime

3 R. Raanan (2003), pp.44-62

2 in the international community4. The North Americans were also another of Franco's objectives, especially after Hitler's and Mussolini defeat. The North American political and financier support was fundamental after the war.

These reasons help to understand that the posters of Iberia reproduced fundamental topics of the imaginary of the Hispanic culture. Don Quixote, a classic of the Spanish literature, was printed in 1948 posters; the Catholicism of the Latin America like the birdcall travellers' from Iberia toward this continent or the exaltation of the folklore of the different Spanish regions. All this topics were fundamental points of the sober Spanish publicity in that time. The connections with Europe hardly received advertising interest in the decade of 1940 and first years of 1950. Although Iberia developed its European network quickly, western powers didn't sympathize with Franco's regime and they were not a fundamental objective of the Iberia’s managers that in this point responded to the guidelines marked by the INI, the main shareholder of the airline and faithful defender of the economic and politic autarchy.

In this first posters it was common the inclusion of the most modern airplanes of Iberia’s fleet. Iberia that had used from 1927 German apparatuses was incorporating from 1944 airplanes coming from the United States. The German Junker remained in the fleet, after the retreat of German influence in Iberia, but DC-3 and DC-4 coming from USA began to be basics in front of the Germanic aeroplanes. As symbol of prestige, since the aeronautical technology of the United States was after the war the most developed one, and like argument of security, all the big European and USA airlines, spread to include in its strategy of publicity, the most modern airplanes that used in its fleet. Iberia thoroughly exploited this resource in all the advertising formats, from timetables to posters exposed in travel agencies, including announcements in newspapers and magazines.

Where more it could appreciate this use of the most recent airplanes it was in the decade of 1950. Most of the Iberia printed posters for their publicity incorporated the most important airplane in their fleet. The Lockheed Superconstellation was the aeroplane acquired in 1953 to start the non stop route between Madrid and New York. The purchase of this apparatus was a bet of the INI, main Iberia’s shareholder, to inaugurate the new time of political relationships and diplomats with the United States. The signature of the treaties between Spain and USA in 1953 started a narrow alliance between both countries5. The alliance meant in aeronautical terms the narrow linking between the interests of USA manufacturing companies and the policy of acquisition of fleet for Iberia. In these relationships the more benefited from these new relationships it was Douglas the company that became until the arrival of the airplanes in 1968, in the favourite of Iberia. J. A. Suanzes, director of the INI up to 1963, considered Douglas the best supplying company of Iberia.

The new relationships among USA and Spain and the backing that the American power gave to Franco's regime coincided with the take off of the firsts waves of USA tourists. The publicity of Iberia in the United States starting from 1954 was based on the exploitation of the existent topics on the image that Spain projected in foreign countries. As explained the manager of the office of Iberia in United States the impressions of the citizens from the United States about Spain were based on the bullfights, the dance and

4 L. Delgado (2003) 5 A. Viñas (2003)

3 the flamenco music, the Spanish landscapes and cultural treasures, like architecture6. According with it most of the production of visual publicity of Iberia in the decade of 1950 was centred in these topics. To incite to travel to Spain Iberia it also used some topics related with the good Spanish climate and with the exclusivity of destinations like Majorca that, also, they had some important cultural connotations for the Anglo-Saxon culture. It is important to point out to this respect that the Canaries islands were not still included in the posters of Iberia because then the tourist main destination were Balearic Islands.

Also in the years 1950 Iberia insisted in the discovery of America like one of the most recurrent topics. The used symbols were the combination of the three caravels and Christopher Columbus figure and the idea of Catholicism like religion that unites Spain with Latin America and that makes of Iberia, as long as symbol of the country settler, the airline that maintains the religious tradition in this region of the world. Without a doubt the Spanish airline was used as symbol of the Franco political regime. In this point the rhetoric of the authorities moved by means of using the image from the flag airline to the exterior and projected the idea of a Spain that braked the communism and the atheistic forces linked to the Soviet expansion after 1945 and Korea’s war.

From 1960 Iberia introduced in their fleet airplanes with jet engines. The election of the new airplanes relapsed in DC-8 manufactured by Douglas. The incorporation of the jets like more modern fleet technologically coincided with the beginnings of a new stage in Iberia like company7. Of course the new apparatus already appeared in all the images of Iberia in press, posters, timetables, scale models in sale rooms and counters of billing. A new time opened up for Iberia that was enlarging its fan of images, diversifying its interests and its objectives to attract passengers but without abandoning the topics that had integrated its visual offer from its origins. It was one period in which Iberia began to experience a spectacular increase of its international traffics, impelled by the tourism coming from the north and centre of Europe. This new situation forced to modify its organic structure to adapt to the new challenges of the market.

2. Growth and crisis of Iberia, 1960-1982

The increase of size of Iberia like company, their external and internal reorganization and the appointment of new executives and president implied the development of a small department of publicity. This new area grew quickly inside the area of sales ticketing. In fact it had begun to work, although still not in a much directed way, toward a modern marketing with the commercial information that arrived from other areas of the company. It was to fulfil the requirements of the marketing plans that already began to elaborate, although still not in a systematic way. First it was defined the market or markets to those that Iberia was interested and the publicity was adapted to the possible desires of the potentials passengers of Iberia. The Department possessed four sections: Art, Production and Distribution, Accounting and Administration and promotion of sales. The system of organization of the campaigns was decentralized. Each commercial delegation could even prepare its campaigns being able to take charge them to local agencies of publicity. The central Department of Iberia approved or it rejected the campaigns proposed by the local delegations. Only the campaigns in press, that is to say

6 Jaime C. Seix (1962), p.15 7 J. Vidal (2005b)

4 those that were published in newspapers and magazines, were organized in a centralized way for the whole company8. In any event the campaigns approved them the international agency of publicity Lennen & Newell.

The strong peak of the during the decade of 1960 took to Franco’s regime to create a ministry of Tourism. This ministerial department shared with Iberia the tasks of carrying out combined and coordinated advertising campaigns. The Ministry financed the expenses and fixed tourist destinations that will be fostered. Canaries and Balearic Islands and the peninsular Mediterranean costs were the places more advertised for Iberia and the Ministry of Tourism. The collaboration between both was centred exclusively in magazines of great prestige, of international environment and directed to sectors of high income. This was coherent keeping in mind the traditional market of the flag airlines.

The Iberia’s promotion was made through three channels. The one that went to the consumers in general that looked for to "consolidate the image of the company"9, the one directed to the wholesalers, fundamentally travel agencies; and, finally the one that got ready for the internal environment of the company, that is to say to the salespersons and personal that assisted the passengers in the delegations and sale points. With these three levels the department of publicity organized commercial activities to develop. Another important chapter was the presence in fairs and the advertising organization of the denominated "Club of Iberia". This was the first try on the part of the Spanish airline of creating a fidelity program, for rewarding the frequent flyers passengers or those people of prestige that could collaborate in the diffusion of the corporate image of Iberia. In the moment of the creation of the department this had a budget of the 3% of ticketing sales. This department had as main creative to Alberto Moreno a specialist in publicity that was responsible for the artistic and visual design of all the material, even that of the decoration of the interiors of the airplanes, as the DC-8, the shop windows of the delegations and the design of crew uniforms.

The creation of an area of publicity was a first step to start a marketing department that would consolidate in 1970 starting from the combination of human resources coming from different areas of Iberia. Until then the department of publicity was inside a Commercial area and depending on the sales Division, with not very much personal and limited in its competitions. In particular there were problems to be able to coordinate and to process information on the profiles of the passengers, in spite of the excellent endowment of computers and technologies of the information that had Iberia, one of the most advanced among the European air companies10. Nevertheless Iberia managers knew how to increase the number of passengers and the means to obtain them. Germán López Vázquez, sub director of sales of Iberia sustained that "before being announced it is necessary to make a complete investigation of the market to know where the big potentials of the same one are. Then it corresponds to the agency of publicity to create the message that has several facets. Our advertising effort should prevail in United States, where Iberia has not still achieved the necessary penetration, and that it is the market of more economic potential and, therefore, in which the widest possibilities should be opened”11.

8 J.Sanz de Lama (1965) 9 Ibidem, p. 19 10 As J. Christensen pointed out (2000) 11 Iberiavión, 44, p. 15

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In the middle of 1960’s Iberia continued having a specific interest in the market of the United States, on which will persist until 1980. After the failure of the lines to Los Ángeles and Boston, settled down in 1978, Iberia concentrated on three markets: New York, Chicago and . These penetration points in the United States stayed in the decade of 1990, when Iberia established its hub in Miami for the flights to Central America and after the signature of the agreements with in 1999 that gave place to the creation of the international alliance, .

In the decade of 1960 Iberia began to notice the competition that the airlines charter carried out in their emergent tourist destinations. However it did not find to worry, because traffics continued increasing very fast. To differentiate the product among scheduled and charter flights, Iberia threw its campaigns of publicity in the years 1960 and beginnings of the 1970 being based on the security and modernity of its aeroplanes. It also reinforced the idea that their product was directed to the segments of higher income. In this context it is necessary to understand the launching of the publicity of the key and the rose (1963), the pictures of the Caravelle that were the airplanes of the fleet of Iberia that covered the European network, and the posters of the series of countries carried out by the publicist and creative of the company, Alberto Moreno.

It is necessary to underline that the aspects of security in the airplanes were of great importance in the years 1960-1970. Most of the companies of charter flights operated with old airplanes, displaced of their fleets for flag companies or rented by specialized companies. Their main destinations were the cities of the Mediterranean coast and the Canaries or Balearics islands, where the product was basically an offer of sun and beach. Those Inclusive Tours was exclusive domain of the tour operators that negotiated with the companies’s charter or that they created its own airlines.

At the beginning of 1970 Iberia began to worry about the strong competition of the flights charter12. Spanish airlines as made diminish their traffics and the answer of Iberia was to create an Inclusive Tour. In 1973 Mundicolor was born, with the purpose of using the fleet of Iberia and of its participated as transport charter. In parallel to this actions Iberia started a campaign of international publicity, pointing out the international vocation of the company, in its interest to put within reach of the traveller flying from the United States all the important destinations of Europe. At the same time the idea of cultural tourist power of Spain was reinforced, went beyond an offer of tourism of sun and beach. The slogan of the advertising campaign of 1973 was "Iberia puts wings to its dreams."

The peak of the company Iberia in the context of the world market air followed its course in the second half of 1960 and beginnings of 1970. The interest to continue its expansion was braked by the institutional restrictions that existed in the world air market. Iberia tried to avoid those restrictions by means of the participation in projects of technical cooperation with Latin American airlines. This way Iberia could get bigger traffic quotas in its bilateral treaties. This was what attempted in and Uruguay, with a partial result for the Spanish airline13. It lost money but it won market quota in both countries. Iberia also attempted it in the and Central America, when participated in the creation of Air International in 1968 and with

12 J. Vidal (2005b) 13 J. Vidal (2003a)

6 Dominicana de Aviación. In both cases Iberia lost money but it was able to affirm its position in the region like first European company in the traffic with Latin America14.

This participation in Latin American companies could be carried out thanks to the high liquidity of Iberia, fruit of the extraordinary results of the company in the European traffic. The tourist peak allowed to take this strategy of obtaining traffic rights ahead in the region and it allowed to Franco's regime to practice its politics of diplomatic expansion leaning on in the idea of hispanism. The introduction of the Boeing 747 in the most important American routes at the end of 1969 reinforced this position of leadership in the European traffic at the beginning of 1970, taking to Iberia until a high position in the classification of the companies of the old continent for passengers' traffic, like sample the graph.

Graph 1

Passengers transported by European airlines (1961-1970)

10000

8000

6000

4000 Millions 2000

0 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970

Iberia Air British Air Lufthansa KLM IATA. World Air Transport Statistics

14 J.Vidal (2003b)

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Since 1978, Iberia experienced very important changes. In first term the economic crisis caused a stagnation of the traffic. The problems in the recovery would stay up to 1984. In second place Spain crossed a period of institutional uncertainty after Franco's death. Finally the beginnings of the process of liberalization of the world market of the air transport in the United States began a process of change in all the airlines of the world. During this transition process Iberia had to face continuous changes in its directive teams because main shareholder, INI, it was also subjected to modifications in the politics for the different Spanish political cabinets.

This group of factors crawled to Iberia to the first losses of its business history. During this period Iberia carried out the biggest change of identity and corporate image of its history. In 1977 it changed their logo of their airplanes. The new image looked for to identify the airline of flag of Spain with the new time of democratic recovery that represented the King Juan Carlos I. Royal crown was painted in the new logo of Iberia. The central body of the planes would be painted by some red and yellow bands that looked for to transmit the idea of dynamism in the designers' opinion, corresponding to the new stage of Iberia. The change of image was made coincide with the 50 anniversary of Iberia15 and the celebration in Madrid of the General Assembly of IATA and it also implied a change in the uniform of crew16. In fact the image change also took some added objective: "the new external appearance would go accompanied by a campaign directed to the whole personnel to stimulate them in the improvement of the services of the Company, with the purpose of recovering the profitability after the losses that 1975/1976 had taken place in the exercise... it was to begin a recovery of Iberia, improving its structures, increasing its level of effectiveness and its grade of competitiveness"17.

The new image of Iberia was not accompanied by changes in its organizational structure. The crisis of the markets was accompanied by a group of new problems for flag airlines. Deregulation in the United States and the high competition of charter airlines questioned the operative system of airlines. The costs increased, in particular those derived of the price of the petroleum and human resources. The strikes of the pilots began to impact in final results and the strong inflation contributed to increase operative costs. The difficulties to contain the salary costs and energy in a context of political changes made retard management decisions to attack a deep reformation of the organization system and administration of an airline of public capital as Iberia.

15 The slogan of 50 anniversary was “50 years making friends” 16 Corporate image change was carried out by Landor and Associates, from San Francisco. Landor had been chosen by INI. 17 J. Viniegra (1988), p.214

8 3. From crisis to the restructuring, 1986-2000

The first years of the decade of 1980 Iberia it looked for, with different manager’s teams, to reduce their deficit and to try to stay in their traditional markets. In fact they were years of serious structural difficulties that put Iberia practically to the border of the crash. Besides the advertising campaigns of press and magazines, the airline tried to look for passengers through the audiovisual media. The access to the Common Market in 1986 and the approval of the first measures of liberalization of the air market in the caused an escalation of the advertising campaigns and the creation of a strategy of much elaborated marketing.

The markets of Latin America were those that received a bigger effort on the part of the creative of publicity that were in charge of the strategy of Iberia. At the beginning of 1982 Iberia began an advertising campaign under the slogan "Uses your wings" that it used as expression under the one which to give covering to all their destinations in Latin America. The same slogan was good to take advantage of Pablo's Picasso image like Spanish painter for the commemorative exhibition of its centennial. The problems of profitability of the company and the structural difficulties took to the Iberia managers to study important changes in their commercialization strategy. It was to use the new information technologies intensively to improve the knowledge of the profile of the passengers and to try to reduce the costs, authentic battle of Iberia regarding the other European flag companies and to promote programs of external projection and internal communication.

At the beginning of 1980 and as a consequence of the bad results, Iberia tried to enlarge its markets. In fact this was an old idea of Iberia that had not been possible to sum up during their years of expansion and economic peacefulness. To expand their routes toward Asia was an idea that came from the beginnings of the years 1940. Since Philippines had been Spanish colony up to 1898, the first Franco’s governments always claimed the Spanish character of these Asian islands and therefore it should move to a specific route of Iberia toward that area. The idea was absurd for the time by not having appropriate fleet and mainly for the null possibilities of profitability for the line. Iberia had established codes shared with the European air companies that had or had had colonies and economic influence in Asia. KLM, and covered with profitability the routes toward Asia and Iberia did not think of establishing its own lines toward the Asian southeast. However the crisis of 1979-1982 pushed the managers to open this market with flights to India and Japan. The first one was suppressed practically in their first year of flights to Bombay. That of Tokyo stayed during 4 years, from 1986 at 1990. They leaned on these routes with a wide advertising that also looked for to project the image of Iberia in the environment of the segment of the business besides being a very well-known airline among tourist sector. The lack of specialization in Asia, a market that Iberia did not know and the increasing offer of Asian companies, in a context of peak of these airlines in a market in expansion, made desist to Iberia of continuing flying in this area.

At the beginning of 1990 Iberia could benefit of extraordinary traffics. The Universal Exhibition of , the Olympic Games of and the nomination of Madrid like European capital of the culture were three events that propitiated a considerable increase of passenger’s traffic in 1992. Iberia supported these three events with a program of publicity that impacted in the character of Iberia like official transport

9 company of the three events and underlined the international character of the Spanish airline.

The preferable character of the Latin American markets was translated in an effort to grow as company by means of purchase of airlines in the region. The reasons that explain this process were that Latin American countries were interested in selling public airlines. At the same time the necessity of Iberia of growing taking into account the liberalization of European air market. In 1990 the company Aerolíneas was bought by Iberia, the 35 for 100 of the Chilean - Airlines of the Copper - and, finally, , the airline of . With these acquisitions Iberia wanted to reinforce its leadership in Latin America, to win market quota and to improve its position in the European scenario. For Iberia these purchases was a strategic bet that was carried out in a terrible moment were Gulf War in 1991 introduced a great uncertainty in the markets and those participated Latin Americans airlines began to create problems for Iberia. Aerolíneas Argentinas began to be a serious problem, until the point that generated losses that were about to take to Iberia to the bankruptcy. Thanks to the authorization of the European Commission the Spanish Government could contribute the necessary capital to balance Iberia’s deficit.

The bad financial situation of Iberia after its multinacionalization policy's failure in Latin America advanced the Spanish Government's measures to change its structure and to adapt it to the scenario of an liberalized Europe for 1994. The directive team was changed in 1996 and the Spanish Government began the process of Iberia’s privatization. The “new” Iberia had as objective: profitability and the maintenance of its traditional markets: Spain, Europe and the American continent. From 1996 the advertising campaigns of Iberia concentrated on these destinations again and with the competition in the Spanish market Iberia tried to differentiate their product regarding of the other two airlines: and Air Europe, two companies that came from the charter market.

In a progressive process Iberia left Ladeco and in 1997 Viasa was sold. Aerolíneas Argentinas passed over it in the 2000 with important losses. Simultaneously the managers’ team that Javier de Irala led as CEO began the contacts with British Airways and American Airlines to enter in the international alliance Oneworld. Starting from 1998 Iberia coordinated advertising campaigns of international environment with the companies of the alliance but especially with the two mentioned airlines. The three had complementary markets and coincided with the strategy of Iberia of defending their traditional areas and especially the one that considered fundamental from their birth like modern company: Latin America.

From 2000 Iberia has fostered the use of internet as a good system to transmit corporate image. This is framed in the commemorative acts of their 75 anniversary in those that the publicity has centred in the traditional markets again but with a different strategy. In this campaign it has been used the image of the babies like youth's parable for a company that takes flying uninterruptedly 75 years.

10 Conclusions

From their consolidation like “flag airline,” in 1944, Iberia deployed its interest to maintain its commercial presence in three markets: Spain, Europe and America. In particular their advertising efforts concentrated on Latin America and Europe. In the first of them there was a coincidence of interests between Franco's regime and the diplomatic politics and of prestige that the directive from Iberia pursued. From 1946 in that it was carried out the air connection between Madrid and Buenos Aires opening new connections to other capitals of Latin America. The idea that was sought to be transmitted based on the Hispanic spirit that Spain had with regard to Latin America and the necessity of leaning on in the old reminiscences of the Empire to get supports in a hostile European and international institutional environment to Franco.

For the same reasons Iberia opened up in 1954 the route to New York. This itinerary had an double objective. On one hand to show to the international market that Iberia possessed a modern fleet that allowed to be in the most important market, competing with USA and European companies of big prestige. On the other hand, the support was recognized that the United States granted to Franco's Government with the signature of the Treaties of Friendship and Cooperation of 1953.

The strong growth of the tourist demand in 1950 and, mainly196-1970 made of Iberia one of the most favoured airlines for the increase of the traffics of passengers in European routes. This growth was based on the transmission of self-confidence idea of security and prestige that managers from Iberia looked for to communicate that the company was very above the negative image of Spain that had in the international community. For it there was a concerted effort of the designers of publicity and marketing and INI to show that Iberia had the most advanced airplane models. It was presented it in symbiosis with the cultural and folkloric aspects of a country that had an artistic treasure and a fundamental architectural patrimony in Europe. They also wanted to differentiate the product that Iberia offered from charter flights and Inclusive Tours business.

The crisis of 1978-1984 and the beginnings of the liberalization policy of air market in the European Union meant for Iberia an important challenge. Their organization model was in question and to make in front of the challenges Iberia had to cope with double risk. First trying to be in a market in which Iberia lacked of knowledge and tradition like Asia. In second place, acquiring Latin American companies to increase their size like company and power to make in front of the competition of European airlines. In both cases it was liquidated with a failure. This forced Iberia to take the complete reorganization of the airline ahead and to make in front of the new situation reinforcing their presence in their traditional markets. It was the Government, regulator of the actions of Iberia that began the changes and established the calendar to privatize the airline. The integration of Iberia in the alliance Oneworld, in 1999, allowed to be centred in its traditional markets and to plan its external image and its marketing campaigns in combination with the alliance and, in short, with American Airlines and British Airways. The old airline of Spanish flag tried to present a new image that on- line with what had happened in 1977, when it modified its external aspect, it sought to transmit the idea that there was a new company, arisen of the 75 year-old tradition of flying in the world.

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