BA eyes alliance with U.S. airlines
British Airways PLC said Wednesday that it is considering ways of cooperating with American Airlines and Continental Airlines Inc.
U.S. airlines have been scrambling to combine or form new alliances since Delta Air Lines Inc. (DAL, Fortune 500) and Northwest Airlines Corp. (NWA, Fortune 500) announced plans to join together earlier this month.
"British Airways is exploring opportunities for co-operation with American Airlines and Continental Airlines," the carrier said in a brief statement.
It added that further details would be announced "when appropriate" and did not provide any information on the nature of the cooperation.
BA and American Airlines are already partners in the Oneworld global alliance.
Roger Frizzell, a spokesman for Fort Worth, Texas-based American, said, "We are confirming British Airways’ statement today that it is exploring opportunities for cooperation with American Airlines and Continental Airlines (CAL, Fortune 500)." He declined to provide more details.
Julie King, a spokeswoman for Continental, said the Houston-based carrier was aware of BA’s statement but declined to comment on it.
Continental said over the weekend that it would not pursue a combination with another carrier right away, a surprising move after weeks of growing speculation that it would join with United Airlines to create the world’s biggest airline.
UAL Corp easy payday loans. (UAUA, Fortune 500)-owned United and US Airways Group Inc. (LCC, Fortune 500) are now in advanced talks on joining their businesses to create what could be the world’s largest carrier.
Instead of pursuing a merger, Continental is in talks with American to work together in an alliance that would not involve merging fleets and work forces.
BA’s statement Wednesday, combined with American’s confirmation, raised the possibility of a three-way alliance. Such a deal might still require regulatory approval. U.S. regulators have twice frustrated efforts by BA and American, a unit of AMR Corp. (AMR, Fortune 500), to expand their ties.
The two carriers sought antitrust immunity for an expanded alliance but gave up in 2001 after regulators said they would have to surrender valuable takeoff and landing slots at London’s Heathrow Airport.
But in March of this year, a so-called "open skies" agreement took effect that allowed more airlines to serve Heathrow if they can find slots, which could ease regulatory objections to a new BA-American agreement.
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