Sir Branson questions British Airways passenger figures

Sir Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Atlantic and an increasingly vocal rival of the United Kingdom’s flag carrier, British Airways, has claimed that his competitor may have modified passenger figures in order to make a more compelling case for its proposed merger with American Airlines. Branson claims that BA decided to not include nearly 6 million passengers transported by the carrier and its American rival in a report submitted to regulators, in order to make it appear that the two companies control less of the transatlantic market than thought. One of the major concerns that all regulators must consider before approving a merger is if doing so would severely reduce competition and thus negatively affect customers. Less competition almost always results in higher prices and route cuts.

Branson referred to the “massaged” figures as a complete “disgrace” and the prominent British businessman suggested that passengers and regulators alike should take claims made by BA that a merger would have a salutary affect with a grain of salt. Branson argued that British Airways and American Airlines together control 63 percent of the London-Heathrow to New York-JFK route, which is the most lucrative of all transatlantic connections. As such, the two carriers are already very dominant players on these flights. Willie Walsh, BA’s chief executive officer, disputed Branson’s allegations concerning the massaged numbers and noted that his company offered “the figures the regulators want to look at.”

Thank you to The Telegraph for the initial report.

www.ba.com