(No Ratings Yet)
Loading ...
Continental Airlines said yesterday that federal regulators have tentatively approved its application for an exemption from antitrust laws, allowing the airline to expand business ties with rivals in the United States and overseas.
The airline wants to partner with United Airlines and Lufthansa on transatlantic flights, and eventually on trips to Latin America and Asia. Without clearance from US. regulators, the airlines would be breaking US. laws that forbid airlines from sharing information on scheduling and ticket pricing. The approval, once complete, clears the way for deeper ties with the Star Alliance, one of the world’s three major airline alliances.
The approval is the first major airline immunity deal of the Obama administration. The decision represents a break with some airline labor unions and Rep. James L. Oberstar (D-Minn.), chairman of the House Transportation committee, who have argued that antitrust exemptions don’t help consumers. A bipartisan group of U.S. senators has also asked regulators to step up scrutiny, calling on the Justice Department to take a more active role in the review.
source: www.washingtonpost.com
Asian Travel News and Guides