UPDATE: US Transportation Official Recused From BA-AMR Study
23 Septiembre 2009 - 2:15PM
Noticias Dow Jones
Deputy U.S. Transportation Secretary John Porcari has been
recused from examining the pending antitrust application led by
British Airways PLC (BAY.LN) and the American Airlines' unit of AMR
Corp. (AMR).
Porcari joins U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood on the
sidelines of the high-profile case. Both men had conflicts of
interest due to their backing of the application, made before they
took office.
DOT is expected to make a decision by late October on the
airlines' plan to coordinate trans-Atlantic services with members
of their Oneworld alliance. The ruling is viewed by the industry as
a key test of evolving U.S. aviation and competition policy.
The U.S. Justice Department weighed in this year with a series
of objections to a similar application by members of the Star
alliance, led by United Airlines parent UAL Corp. (UAUA) and
Deutsche Lufthansa AG. (LHA.XE).
DOT has final jurisdiction in airline competition matters, but
comments from Justice on the BA-AMR case are keenly anticipated
after most of Justice's objections were rejected by transport
officials in approving the expansion of Star to include Continental
Airlines Inc. (CAL).
The final deliberations on Oneworld will be made without DOT's
two top officials. The U.S. Transportation Department confirmed
Wednesday that Porcari had been recused because he filed a comment
on the case last November, when he was transportation secretary for
the state of Maryland.
LaHood stepped back from the case earlier this year, some months
after his own comments on the matter were first disclosed.
BA and American declined comment.
This is the airlines' third effort to secure immunity and gain
parity with members of Star and SkyTeam, the third global alliance.
Two previous attempts were dropped after the concessions sought
from regulators were seen as too onerous.
-By Kaveri Niththyananthan, Dow Jones Newswires; 4420-7842-9299;
kaveri.niththyananthan@dowjones.com
(Josh Mitchell and Doug Cameron contributed to this
article.)