2M is the most reliable and stable alliance in the alliance
According to THE Sea‑Intelligence analysis report, container shipping's current three-tier Alliance structure has been in place since April 2017, when Ocean Alliance and THE Alliance were formed alongside the existing 2M alliance. After nearly eight years of operation, February 2025 will bring a new alliance structure.
Trends in flight reliability have changed a lot during this eight-year period, and flight reliability can be difficult to understand over longer periods, which is why we have created a composite score for each year these alliances have operated.
The analysts came up with the following calculation: For each route operated by the alliance, count the number of months in which each alliance ranked 1st, 2nd or 3rd in terms of flight reliability. Then, multiply these numbers by 3, 2, and 1, respectively, to represent 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place, respectively. The annual total is shown in Figure 1.
Among them, in 2017 and 2018, THE Ocean Alliance was the most stable shipping alliance for flight time reliability, followed by the 2M alliance, while The Alliance lagged far behind.
In 2019 and 2020, 2M and THE Ocean Alliance switched places, while in 2021, the Ocean Alliance is even behind The Alliance. In 2024, Ocean Alliance once again reclaimed THE top spot, and The Alliance also saw a significant recovery in in-flight reliability, moving to second place. 2M is the shipping alliance with the least stable flight timing reliability in 2024.
In the entire alliance life cycle 2017-2024, 2M has the most stable schedule reliability and the highest overall score. They ranked first in 49% of cases and second in 31% of cases. Ocean Alliance was the second most reliable shipping alliance, ranking first in 36 percent of cases and second in 39 percent of cases. THE Alliance came top in only 15% of cases and second in 31% of cases.
