Delta Air Lines and Canada’s WestJet said late Friday they had scrapped a proposed U.S-Canada joint venture after the U.S. government demanded changes they said were “unreasonable and unacceptable”, as it was informed by mass media Nov. 21.
Last month, the Transportation Department as part of its tentative antitrust immunity approval said it would require the carriers to remove Swoop, an ultra low-cost carrier affiliate of WestJet, from the alliance, and divest 16 takeoff and landing slots at New York’s LaGuardia Airport.
The airlines said in a filing that the U.S. demands were “arbitrary and capricious” especially the slot divestitures.
The airlines added they remain “committed to developing a U.S. – Canada Joint Venture but in the meantime will explore deepening the alliance for the benefit of mutual guests.”
Delta Air Lines, Inc., typically referred to as Delta, is one of the major airlines of the United States and a legacy carrier. It is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline, along with its subsidiaries and regional affiliates, including Delta Connection, operates over 5,400 flights daily and serves 325 destinations in 52 countries on six continents. Delta is a founding member of the SkyTeam airline alliance.
Delta has nine hubs, with Atlanta being its largest in terms of total passengers and number of departures. It is ranked second among the world's largest airlines by number of scheduled passengers carried, revenue passenger-kilometers flown, and fleet size.
