British Airways eyes Iberia
British Airways executives are holding preliminary talks with Spanish airline Iberia about a possible merger, according to a BBC account of Spanish press reports.
British Airways officials have made clear their interest in a joint venture with Iberia, especially to maintain competitiveness in the wake of the recently announced Air France-KLM merger.
Full-scale takeovers are still restricted by bilateral aviation agreements, but consolidation in the European airline industry is expected to increase once European Union competition authorities agree on free trade and investment rules for a region-wide aviation market.
