Court overturns US order that would have ended Aeromexico-Delta joint venture

The US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit has sided with Aeromexico and Delta Air Lines, overturning a Department of Transportation order that had moved to terminate the approval and antitrust immunity underpinning their joint venture across the US-Mexico border.

With the ruling, the partnership and its antitrust protections remain intact for now, allowing the two carriers to continue coordinating schedules, pricing and network planning under the joint venture framework.

The Department of Transportation had previously sought to end the arrangement, though the specific grounds cited by the agency were not detailed in available material. The appeals court's decision effectively blocks that termination from taking effect, at least for the time being.

Delta holds a significant equity stake in Aeromexico, and the joint venture has allowed the two airlines to operate as close partners on routes linking the United States and Mexico, including coordinated pricing and codesharing. Antitrust immunity is significant for such alliances because it permits airlines that would otherwise be competitors to jointly plan networks and set fares without running afoul of competition law.

It remains unclear whether the Department of Transportation will seek further review of the court's decision or pursue other regulatory avenues to revisit the joint venture's status. No timeline for further proceedings was given in the available information.

The case has been closely watched within the industry given its implications for cross-border airline alliances more broadly, though the immediate effect of the ruling is limited to preserving the existing Aeromexico-Delta arrangement rather than establishing new precedent for other partnerships.