European regulators have today opened a competition probe into a cooperation deal between Delta, Air France-KLM and Alitalia on flights between the US and Europe.
The European Commission said it will investigate "whether the partnership may harm passengers on certain EU-US routes where, in the absence of the joint venture, the parties would be providing competing services."
The deal "could be in breach" of EU rules that prohibit anti-competitive agreements, the EU competition watchdog said in a statement.
Under the agreements signed between 2009 and 2010, the US, French and Italian air carriers fully coordinate the capacity, schedules, prices and revenue management of their transatlantic operations, the commission said. The SkyTeam alliance members also share profits and losses on their transatlantic flights, it said.
"This partnership represents the deepest form of cooperation within SkyTeam and aims at the alignment of the parties' commercial incentives," the commission said.
The commission stated that its new investigation was "coherent" with its actions related to transatlantic joint ventures within the two other worldwide alliances, Star and oneworld.
"The opening of a new investigation on the joint venture is logical since the commission has already opened similar probes regarding the other transatlantic joint ventures," said an Air France-KLM spokeswoman.
US authorities have given the SkyTeam joint venture "antitrust immunity," she added.
An Alitalia spokesman refused to comment on the investigation. The probe into oneworld alliance members American Airlines, British Airways and Iberia ended in 2010 with the carriers agreeing to make landing and take off slots available to competitors at London Heathrow airport.
The investigation of Star Alliance members Air Canada, Continental, Lufthansa and United is ongoing.
Meanwhile, the commission closed a probe into cooperation agreements between eight SkyTeam members: Aeromexico, Air France and its Dutch sister carrier KLM, Alitalia, Continental Airlines, Czech Airlines, Delta, and Korean Air Lines.
The investigation ended because of "significant changes in the circumstances on the relevant markets," but it does not relieve SkyTeam members from ensuring they obey EU competition law, the statement said. Continental has since merged with fellow US carrier United Airlines, which is part of the Star Alliance.
