Air France and Alitalia Will Have To Give Up Flights

Air France and Alitalia must give up some flights linking Paris with Milan and Rome to get antitrust approval for an alliance, the European Commission has said.

The European Union's regulatory arm ?has serious doubts that their cooperation agreement can be approved in its current form? as the accord will ?significantly reduce? competition and keep fares high on the routes, the commission said.

?The final outcome of the case will depend on the response of Air France and Alitalia and in particular their ability to create conditions to favor the emergence of new competitors on the affected routes,? said Competition Commissioner Mario Monti in a statement distributed to journalists.

The airlines agreed a year ago to work together commercially, linking frequent-flyer plans and sharing some routes as Alitalia joins the SkyTeam alliance led by Delta Air Lines and Air France. The accord includes a plan for Air France and Alitalia to swap between two and three percent of their shares.

Author: Neftegaz.ru