BA given approval for transatlantic tie-ups
BRITISH Airways has been given the green light approval to operate a joint business on transatlantic flights with American Airlines and Iberia.
The US Department of Transportation gave the airlines the go ahead.
BA and its partners will co-operate commercially on flights to the US, Canada and Mexico from the EU, Switzerland and Norway.
BA chief executive Willie Walsh said: “This final approval is fantastic news. We’ve waited 14 years to bring the benefits of the transatlantic joint business to our customers and level the playing field with the other two global alliances.
“As we have argued all along, the EU-US market is highly competitive and Heathrow’s liberalisation in 2008 opened it up even further. We are delighted that the US and EU authorities have recognised this.
“We’re pleased that the DOT and EU have worked together to ensure that there is consistency in the number of slots that the three airlines have to give up for our competitors to use on services from Heathrow to the US.”