A PROPOSED link-up between British Airways and giant US carrier American Airlines (AA) is to be investigated by the European Commission, it was announced yesterday.
BA, together with Spanish airline partner Iberia, said earlier this month it had signed a joint business agreement with AA to co-operate on transatlantic flights.
BA has requested US authorities give it immunity from competition regulations – know
n as antitrust immunity – and the airline also notified EU authorities of its plans.
Yesterday the EC said: "The commission has opened an own-initiative investigation under EU antitrust rules into the intended co-operation agreement between BA, Iberia and AA, announced on 14 August."
A BA spokeswoman said: "We look forward to showing the EC how our plans will benefit consumers."
The proposed link-up has been bitterly opposed by Sir Richard Branson's airline, Virgin Atlantic.
Sir Richard has described it as creating a "monster monopoly" in a deal which he says will give BA an even greater share of the market as well as the take-off and landing slots at Heathrow airport.
BA has twice failed to gain approval for link-ups with AA, but the airline argues that times have changed since transatlantic routes were opened up through the US-EU "open skies" deal which came into effect in March this year.
Virgin Atlantic chief executive Steve Ridgway said: "The EC have rightly begun an investigation, under their own initiative, because they understand that consumers will be worse off if this alliance proceeds."
The full article contains 256 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
