Hungary’s development ministry has today announced it accepts a European Commission state aid ruling declaring that millions of euros given between 2007 and 2010 to loss-making state airline Malév were illegal.

Malaysia has marked the implementation of its Competition Act by opening an investigation of two airlines over concerns their cooperation agreement could raise costs and disadvantage customers.

Brazil’s Council for Economic Defence (CADE) has approved a US$3.2 billion merger between Brazilian airline TAM and Chilean flag carrier LAN – but lawyers say time will tell whether conditions imposed are sufficient to prevent excessive concentration on certain routes serviced by the new company.

A US federal judge has recommended striking down US Department of Justice charges against former air cargo executive Rodrigo Hernan Hidalgo, finding that Hidalgo should have been shielded from prosecution by a plea agreement with his employer.

A former executive of a Peruvian airline became the latest person to plead guilty to taking part in a price fixing conspiracy, in conjunction with the US Department of Justice (DoJ) antitrust division’s continuing investigation of the air cargo industry.

Chile’s Supreme Court will review the clearance of the merger between airlines LAN and TAM, together called LATAM, after both companies and a rival challenged the country’s National Competition Tribunal’s (TDLC) conditional clearance of the deal.

Rival Latin American carriers LAN Airlines and TAM Linhas Aereas say they are still processing the implications of a decision by a Chilean competition court to attach nearly a dozen structural and behavioural conditions to the companies’ proposed merger.

Sabre Holdings has won dismissal of two antitrust complaints filed by US Airways. Sabre was accused of abusing its dominance in the airline ticket distribution market.

After winning its case at the UK’s Competition Appeals Tribunal, the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has reopened its investigation of Ryanair’s purchase of a minority shareholding in rival Aer Lingus. 

New Zealand’s Commerce Commission has won permission to bring a case against eight airlines accused of price fixing on air cargo shipments, after the country’s High Court ruled it had jurisdiction to hear the matter.

Saudi Arabian Airlines has agreed to pay US$14 million to end its role in an antitrust class action against an alleged cartel in the air cargo industry.

US airline ticket distributor Sabre Holdings has resubmitted its motion to dismiss an antitrust complaint brought by US Airways.

Malaysia Airlines has agreed to pay US$3.2 million to end its involvement in an antitrust class action alleging that the company conspired with rivals to fix fees and surcharges for air cargo shipments.