ATLANTA and MEXICO CITY, March 31,
2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) and
Grupo Aeromexico (Mexico:
AEROMEX.MX) have filed an application with the U.S. Department of
Transportation seeking antitrust immunity for a new joint venture
on flights between the United
States and Mexico.
The application marks a significant step in the creation of a
$1.5 billion joint venture that will
allow Delta and Aeromexico to compete more effectively on routes
between the U.S. and Mexico. The
joint venture will provide more options for travelers in both
countries, while enabling joint investments by the two airlines,
further improving the customer experience.
"Mexico is the most popular
international destination for Delta customers, and our proposed
joint venture will offer our customers more schedule and
destination choices, whether traveling for business or pleasure,"
said Ed Bastian, Delta's President.
"Approval of antitrust immunity will allow travelers to fully
benefit from all the aspects of a future Delta-Aeromexico joint
venture, including the combination of two complementary
networks."
"We are thrilled at this opportunity to further deepen our
relationship with Delta. The potential to align our networks and
scheduling means that we will be able to offer greater customer
choice than we would have been able to offer individually," said
Andres Conesa, CEO of Grupo
Aeromexico.
The request also will be submitted for approval to the Mexican
antitrust authorities, the Comision Federal de Competencia
Economica (Federal Economic Competition Commission). Upon receipt
of the required governmental approvals, Delta and Aeromexico will
seek to expand opportunities to co-locate and invest in airport
facilities by improving gates, lounges and the overall connecting
experience. Additionally the airlines will increase joint sales and
marketing initiatives.
Through the proposed joint venture, the airlines will offer an
expanded network within Mexico and
connections to U.S. business centers in Los Angeles and New
York. Aeromexico's hubs – Mexico City, Monterrey, Guadalajara and Hermosillo – will give Delta customers greater
access to cities throughout Mexico. Delta will provide Aeromexico with a
broad North American network via Delta's key hubs, including
Atlanta, Detroit, Los
Angeles, Minneapolis,
New York, Salt Lake City and Seattle, and a strong marketing presence
throughout the U.S.
Delta and Aeromexico launched their first codeshare in 1994 and
both became founding airlines of SkyTeam in 2000. In 2011, Delta
entered into an enhanced commercial agreement with Aeromexico, and
in 2012, Delta invested $65 million
in shares of Grupo Aeromexico, the parent company of Aeromexico.
Currently Delta and Aeromexico offer more than 4,000 weekly
codeshare flights, representing more than 80 daily transborder
round-trip flights. A year ago, Delta and Aeromexico opened a joint
MRO in Queretaro.
About Aeromexico
Grupo Aeromexico, S.A.B. de C.V. is a
holding company whose subsidiaries are engaged in commercial
aviation in Mexico and the
promotion of passenger loyalty programs. Aeromexico, the largest
airline in Mexico, operates more
than 600 daily flights from its main hub in Terminal 2 at the
Mexico City International Airport.
Its destinations network features more than 80 cities on three
continents, including 47 destinations in Mexico, 16 in the
United States, 16 in Latin
America, three in Europe,
two in Asia and two in
Canada. The Group's fleet of more
than 120 aircraft is comprised of Boeing 787, 777, 767 and 737 jet
airliners and next generation Embraer 145, 170, 175 and 190 models.
In 2012, the airline announced the most significant investment
strategy in aviation history in Mexico, to purchase 100 Boeing aircraft
including 90 MAX B737 jet airliners and 10 B787-9 Dreamliners.
As a founding member of the SkyTeam airline alliance, Aeromexico
offers customers 1,000 destinations in 178 countries served by the
19 SkyTeam airline partners rewarding passengers with benefits
including access to 530 premium airport lounges around the
world.
About Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines is working to
be the best U.S. airline in Latin
America and the Caribbean.
Its achievements have been recognized with two top distinctions by
Latin Trade's Best of Travel Annual Awards 2014, leading the
categories of "Most Improvement Overall" and "Best Partnerships and
Alliances," and being the only U.S. airline in this year's
rankings. Delta continues to grow in Latin America through its long-term exclusive
alliances with GOL Linhas Aereas Inteligentes and Aeromexico and is
committed to building a solid regional footprint thus enhancing its
global network and offering a better overall experience for its
customers. Delta provides service to 30 countries and 53
destinations in the region offering over 1,800 weekly flights
between Latin America/Caribbean and the U.S. Delta customers can
receive real-time, on-the-go travel assistance in Spanish and
Portuguese through Twitter channels @DeltaAssist_ES and @DeltaAjuda
from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. ET. Brazilian
customers can also access Delta's dedicated Brazil Facebook page,
visiting http://www.facebook.com/DeltaAirLinesBrasil.
Delta Air Lines serves more than 170 million customers each
year. Delta was named to FORTUNE magazine's top 50 World's Most
Admired Companies in addition to being named the most admired
airline for the fourth time in five years. Additionally, Delta has
ranked No.1 in the Business Travel News Annual Airline survey for
four consecutive years, a first for any airline. With an
industry-leading global network, Delta and the Delta Connection
carriers offer service to 326 destinations in 59 countries on six
continents. Headquartered in Atlanta, Delta employs nearly 80,000 employees
worldwide and operates a mainline fleet of more than 700 aircraft.
The airline is a founding member of the SkyTeam global alliance and
participates in the industry's leading trans-Atlantic joint venture
with Air France-KLM and Alitalia as well as a newly formed joint
venture with Virgin Atlantic. Including its worldwide alliance
partners, Delta offers customers more than 15,000 daily flights,
with key hubs and markets including Amsterdam, Atlanta, Boston,
Detroit, Los Angeles, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York-JFK, New
York-LaGuardia, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Salt Lake City, Seattle
and Tokyo-Narita. Delta has invested billions of dollars in airport
facilities, global products, services and technology to enhance the
customer experience in the air and on the ground. Additional
information is available on delta.com, Twitter @Delta,
Google.com/+Delta, Facebook.com/delta and Delta's blog
takingoff.delta.com.
Logo -
http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20090202/DELTALOGO
Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150331/195859LOGO
To view the original version on PR Newswire,
visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/delta-aeromexico-file-antitrust-immunity-application-300058922.html
SOURCE Delta Air Lines