Delta, SAS secure codeshare approval from US DOT

The US Department of Transportation approved codeshare operations for Delta Air Lines and SAS this week, a key component in the transition of the Scandinavian carrier. Securing the codeshare authorization with Delta is a step towards smoothing the sales process for the airlines across each others’ operations, and also towards SAS ultimately joining the multi-airline joint venture for transatlantic traffic.

SAS secured financial backing from the Air France–KLM group earlier this year and emerged from bankruptcy just a couple weeks ago. The carrier also exited Star Alliance, a group it helped found more than 25 years ago, and joined SkyTeam at the beginning of September.

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The Delta/SAS request was opposed by JetBlue, which faces opposition in its efforts to secure some codeshare approvals in Europe. Ultimately, however, the DOT determined that JetBlue’s request had key jurisdictional differences. While Delta and SAS seek to manage traffic between the US and EU countries, as well as beyond-EU traffic, the pending JetBlue application seeks to route US-EU traffic a non-EU airline (Air Serbia) via an airport located outside the EU (Belgrade, Serbia). While not quite the same thing as cabotage, it has certain regulatory similarities.

[T]he Joint Applicants argue that the proposed JetBlue third-country carrier situation is different factually from the situation presented by the Delta-SAS applications. The Joint Applicants state the JetBlue’s situation involves a code share on a non-EU carrier, Air Serbia, via a non-EU point, Belgrade, to serve U.S.-EU routes.

Indeed, the DOT worked with the foreign regulators to understand this subtle difference, and that “certain air transport agreements between EU Member States and Balkan States may continue to apply, and that those agreements may provide for a different scope of code-share rights. This may affect the ability of JetBlue to acquire the authority that it has requested. The bilateral or multilateral agreement basis for the third-country code-share services contemplated by JetBlue may be materially different from the basis that may apply to other code-share arrangements and services.”

Delta and SAS suggested that they would accept a carve out of routes affected by JetBlue’s pending requests so as to secure the (many) other pending codeshare authorities. Ultimately the DOT found that unnecessary, granting the blanket request from SAS and Delta.

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Delta and SAS also requested that the DOT waive a traditional 45-day advance filing period for specific route approvals. This part of the request was also granted, allowing Delta and SAS to begin their codeshare operations immediately. Expect to see those additional flight numbers and routing options appearing in the market imminently.

SAS launched service to Atlanta over the summer, and additional expansion and market shift towards Delta hubs is expected.