BA owner considering bid for transatlantic rival Norwegian

The owner of BA has said it is considering making a bid for rival airline Norwegian, amid fierce competition between the two for transatlantic passengers. IAG formed via the 2010 merger of BA with Iberia, said it had built up a stake of 4.6% in Norwegian, and that it sees the rapidly expanding airline as an “attractive investment”. IAG said: “The minority investment is intended to establish a position from which to initiate discussions with Norwegian, including the possibility of a full offer for Norwegian.” The company said it did not know of IAG’s interest until press reports on Thursday morning and had not held any discussions with IAG. It added that the BA owner’s interest confirms the potential of Norwegian’s business model and its growth prospects. Norwegian has proved a thorn in BA’s side of late, launching low-cost transatlantic routes and picking up new landing slots at Gatwick as part of aggressive expansion plans. <br/>