oneworld Unites All 15 Member Airlines Against Wildlife Trafficking

Royal Jordanian's signature in Brussels completes an alliance-wide Buckingham Palace Declaration pledge covering a network of nearly 1,000 destinations.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• oneworld says it is the first airline alliance whose entire membership has endorsed the Buckingham Palace Declaration.
• Royal Jordanian CEO Samer Majali completed the 15-airline commitment during IATA's Wings of Change Europe event in Brussels.
• Members are pledging stronger detection, screening, reporting, training and cooperation with customs and law enforcement.
• The alliance's network reaches nearly 1,000 destinations, giving the coordinated anti-trafficking effort global scope.

Airline passengers and air cargo operators across almost 1,000 destinations are set to come under a more coordinated effort against illegal wildlife trafficking after oneworld secured a commitment from all 15 of its member airlines to the Buckingham Palace Declaration. The alliance says it is the first airline alliance to obtain unanimous member support for the transport-sector initiative, which aims to make global travel and logistics networks harder for wildlife traffickers to exploit.

The final signature came from Royal Jordanian President and CEO Samer Majali during the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) Wings of Change Europe event in Brussels. His endorsement completed the alliance-wide commitment announced on 16 October 2026, linking airlines operating across multiple continents through a shared approach to detecting and reporting suspicious activity.

The declaration was established in 2016 through United for Wildlife, an initiative of The Royal Foundation. It calls on transport businesses to reduce vulnerabilities in supply chains through better information exchange, reporting to customs and law-enforcement authorities and action on suspicious consignments. For airlines, that extends beyond cargo handling to training passenger-facing and operational staff to recognise indicators of illicit wildlife trade.

From industry pledge to frontline action

Under the agreement, oneworld carriers have committed to a zero-tolerance position on illegal wildlife trading, enhanced screening and compliance measures in cargo and passenger operations, additional frontline training and closer cooperation with governments, customs agencies and conservation organisations. The commitments establish a common direction for the airlines; the announcement does not set out airline-by-airline implementation timetables or quantified enforcement targets.

“The complete commitment of all oneworld members greatly increases our ability to identify and disrupt trafficking and help combat the illegal trade in wildlife,” said Ole Orvér, the alliance’s CEO. He linked the initiative to aviation’s role in protecting endangered species and ecosystems.

The network includes Alaska Airlines/Hawaiian Airlines, American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Fiji Airways, Finnair, Iberia, Japan Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Oman Air, Qantas, Qatar Airways, Royal Air Maroc, Royal Jordanian and SriLankan Airlines. Their international connections give the initiative a wide geographic reach, although effective disruption will depend on how consistently staff training, intelligence exchange and reporting procedures are implemented.

Why transport networks matter

Illegal wildlife products can move through legitimate transport channels alongside ordinary passenger baggage and commercial cargo. The Buckingham Palace Declaration’s original commitments focus on sharing credible intelligence about high-risk routes, reporting suspected trafficking to competent authorities and, where possible, refusing suspicious shipments. Those measures are designed to make it more difficult for criminal networks to use lawful transport services.

Lord William Hague, co-chair of United for Wildlife, welcomed the alliance into its Transport Taskforce and said closer cooperation with law enforcement and conservation partners would strengthen the aviation sector’s ability to identify and deter wildlife trafficking.

For the wider aviation industry, the announcement highlights a practical intersection between sustainability commitments and day-to-day transport security. Unlike initiatives focused primarily on emissions or resource use, the declaration asks participating operators to address the movement of illegally traded wildlife through established operational and regulatory processes.

Further information about the initiative is available from United for Wildlife, while the alliance’s official announcement provides details of its members’ collective endorsement.