Chile: Sector unions slam airline alliance

Chile’s Association for Tourism Enterprises (ACHET) has issued a statement harshly criticizing the recent alliance struck between Latam Airlines, American Airlines and IAG (parent company for both Iberia and British Airways.) In the Association’s view, the agreement -currently being reviewed by the country’s competition tribunal, the TDLC- “would allow them to create an un-beatable network, controlling over 75% of the air market” and allowing “using predatory conduct when competing for passengers and cargo flights.”

The country’s economic prosecutors, the FNE, has also taken up the case over concerns of a possibly excessive market concentration as a result of the agreement. The agency has said it will focus precisely on air cargo transport and the alliance’s impact on the sector. In this vein, the FNE has requested Chile’s main Union for salmon industries – SalmonChile- to bring forward any information regarding the case.

The ACHET presented a complaint before the TDLC, as well as the US Department of Transportation, demanding they evaluate the JBA conditions set forth by the airlines. The call was later also taken up by consumer agency Conadecus, which will too present its own information to aid the FNE’s investigation.

Full Content: Pulso

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