The U.S. Department of Transport (DoT) has just granted antitrust immunity to the four SkyTeam alliance partners present on the Europe/ United States market: Air France, Alitalia, CSA Czech Airlines and Delta Air Lines. Coming at a time when the air transport sector is going through a severe crisis, this decision will boost the positions of all four airlines by strengthening their marketing cooperation in SkyTeam through the coordination of resources.
With antitrust immunity, the four airlines will be able to harmonize their networks and schedules on North Atlantic routes. The coordination of Delta`s US hubs with the Air France hub in Paris, CSA`s hub in Prague and Alitalia`s hubs in Milan and Rome will enhance the alliance`s commercial offering with an optimized choice of frequencies and destinations.
Furthermore, the antitrust immunity granted by the US Authorities will enable the airlines concerned to coordinate their marketing policies in order to enhance services offered to customers, thanks to standardized products and procedures.

Finally, the harmonization of resources will generate economies of scale, which in turn will result in competitive fares for customers.

The antitrust immunity granted by the DoT to Air France, Alitalia, CSA and Delta will not affect the existing relations with other SkyTeam members.

The SkyTeam alliance grouping Air France, Aeromexico, Alitalia, CSA, Delta and Korean Air offers quality service with over 8,000 daily flights to 500 destinations worldwide to the 221 million passengers it carries every year.
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