Air France-KLM, 10 other airlines hit with E776m EU fine

Air France-KLM, BA and nine other airlines were hit with an E776m fine by EU antitrust regulators Friday for taking part in an air cargo cartel more than a decade ago. The EC re-imposed the penalties after Europe's second highest court in 2015 annulled the EU executive's 2010 decision due to a procedural error. The fines were unchanged for all the airlines except for the amount due from Martinair - cut to E15.4m from the E29.5m amount set in 2010. Air France was fined E182.9m, the highest, followed by KLM at 127.1m, BA at 104.4m, Cargolux at 79.9m and Singapore Airlines at 74.8m. Other carriers penalised were Air Canada, Cathay Pacific Airways, Japan Airlines, LAN Chile and SAS. Lufthansa, along with subsidiary Swiss International Airlines, escaped a fine as it alerted the cartel to the EU competition authority. The Commission said it had fixed the procedural error cited by the court. "Working together in a cartel rather than competing to offer better services to customers does not fly with the Commission," EC Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said. SAS, with a 70m fine, and Air Canada, with a 21m fine, have said they would appeal the new decision.<br/>