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LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA 11, 2023 Flights are preparing to take off at LAX on January 11, 2023 after an FAA computer problem.
Caroline Cole | Los Angeles Times | Getty Images
JetBlue Airways It said Wednesday that it will not appeal a federal judge’s decision to block its Northeastern partnership with American Airlines. Last month, American said it would appeal the ruling.
New York-based JetBlue is in a bid to take over the low-cost carrier Spirit Airlinesa deal that has already been challenged by the Justice Department as the Biden administration seeks to crack down on mergers that it finds harmful to competition.
“Despite our deep conviction of the pro-competitive benefits of NEA, after much consideration, JetBlue has made the difficult decision not to appeal the court’s decision that NEA cannot continue as it has currently established it,” JetBlue said in a statement.
She said she had begun to finalize the agreement, “a pacification process that will take place in the coming months.”
JetBlue said it will “now shift more focus to our proposed combination with Spirit.”
JetBlue’s deal to buy Spirit came after JetBlue and American launched a partnership in the Northeast. The so-called Northeast Alliance, approved during the waning days of the Trump administration, allows the two carriers to share passengers and revenue and coordinate schedules.
But a federal judge ruled in May that the partnership was anti-competitive, and ordered the two airlines to break up the alliance.
American Airlines did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
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