A United States Justice of the Peace ruled last Friday that American Airlines and JetBlue must end their alliance and ordered the companies to separate within 30 days, saying the agreement meant higher prices for customers.
According to a Justice Department statement, the judge justified that the airlines’ decision to stop competing in Boston and New York, where they are significant operators, violated Section 1 of the Sherman Act because it raised rates and reduced prospects. Kia the choice of domestic commuters in several markets across the country.
The decision represents a victory for the administration of US President Joe Biden, as the Justice Department, six states including Massachusetts and the District of Columbia filed suit in 2021 to nullify the agreement announced in 2020.
In addition, the attorney general, Merrick Garland, stressed that the judge’s ruling was a victory for Americans, who “rely on competition between airlines to travel cheaply.”
“The Department of Justice will continue to protect competition and enforce our antitrust laws in the well-established airline industry and across industries.”
In this regard, JetBlue expressed its “disappointment” with the decision and stated that “the alliance has been a huge win for customers” by extending the airline’s low fares “to more routes than would otherwise have been possible”.
For its part, American Airlines denounced that “the Court’s legal analysis for the joint venture is patently erroneous and unprecedented.” He also insisted that the alliance has been a “big win” for customers and anything but anti-competitive.
