Posted on: Saturday, August 4, 2001

American, British Airways seek alliance

Associated Press

American Airlines and British Airways carriers hope to do business together. Advertiser library photo

DALLAS — American Airlines and British Airways said yesterday they would attempt to revive a failed alliance that would include sharing scheduling, pricing and profits on transatlantic routes.

The proposal is similar to a 1996 plan that was effectively killed by U.S. and European antitrust regulators.

Officials at Fort Worth-based American, the world's largest carrier, and British Airways said an alliance would help them compete against other big U.S. and European airlines that in recent years have struck deals to sell tickets on each other's flights.

"The world has changed radically since 1996," said Andrew Cahn, British Airway's director of government affairs. "Other airlines ... have gotten larger and more effective.

"The marketplace across the Atlantic has become more competitive."

Cahn and American officials say they just want the same advantages enjoyed by other alliances, including United-Lufthansa, Delta-Air France and Northwest-KLM.

On the surface, the agreement would effectively reduce consumers' choice of U.S.-U.K. carriers by one.

American and British Airways officials acknowledged that other carriers will probably object to the deal unless they are given greater access to takeoff and landing slots at London's Heathrow Airport — a stumbling block in the carriers' last attempt to work together.

The Air Travelers Association, a passenger advocacy group in Washington, endorsed the American-British Airways deal, saying it would prompt the U.S. and U.K. governments to approve a long-stalled "open skies" treaty. The treaty would let carriers decide — without needing regulators' approval — where and how often to fly in the two countries.