Japan Airlines Corp.'s new management team said Feb. 1 that they will examine from scratch alliance talks with U.S. carriers American Airlines Inc. and Delta Air Lines Inc.

New JAL President Masaru Onishi said during his first news conference that internal discussions are ongoing and the carrier has a "neutral" stance.

Speculation had been rife that JAL will form a business tie-up with Delta and switch to the Delta-led SkyTeam global airline alliance. It is currently part of the oneworld grouping led by American Airlines.

Onishi along with new Chief Executive Officer Kazuo Inamori said they will break away from the past to reconstruct the airline now that its rehabilitation process has started.

"As a longtime business manager, JAL's reconstruction will be possible if the rehabilitation plan is (carefully carried out)," Inamori said.