| Journal: TWUK | Section: |
| Title: | Issue Date: 01/05/00 |
| Author: | Page Number: 6 |
| Copyright: Other |
BA confirms plans to sell loss-making Air Liberte
BRITISHAirways has confirmed it is to sell off its loss-making French subsidiary Air Liberte.Negotiations are currently underway with Taitbout Antibes, the Netherlands-based owner of French carrier AOM.
A sale, expected to be complete this summer, will be a blow to BA rival Air France which had shown interest in acquiring Air Liberte to strengthen its domestic network.
BA is understood to have been looking to sell Air Liberte for several months following losses resulting from intense competition with Air France on key Paris routes (Travel Weekly March 6).
BA’s move out of the French market, where it has used Air Liberte’s 24-strong fleet for long and short-haul services, means it loses a strategic foothold in Europe’s second most important mainland European market after Germany.
The decision also puts more pressure on its German subsidiary Deutsche BA to perform more competitively. It too has suffered during stiff competition, with Lufthansa, and has had to drop important domestic German routes due to losses.
Meanwhile, BA is expected to launch an Italian domestic airline this summer, either through a start-up operation or by buying into a regional carrier such as Meridiana, though Alitalia will be a strong rival.