Provisional thumbs down for Link PNG, PNG Air merger

A proposed Joint Operating Agreement between Papa New Guinea’s Link PNG and fellow domestic carrier PNG Air is likely to be turned down for competitive reasons, while a proposed code-share between the two airlines may only be authorised with amendments to limit anti-competitive effects. This is according to a draft determination by the country’s Independent Consumer and Competition Commission (ICCC), which has invited submissions from stakeholders and the public before making a final decision on the matter. This followed an application by Link PNG lodged on April 9, 2021, for authorisation to enter into a JOA which would include a code-share agreement with PNG Air for a period of five years. According to an ICCC statement, the JOA would include coordination of flight schedules, fleet allocation, operational and maintenance of services, and charter airline operations between the two airlines in the domestic market, covering scheduled and charter flights, as well as domestic air freight services. Link PNG’s proposed code-share agreement would be on a free-sale basis. ICCC Commissioner and Chief Executive Officer, Paulus Ain, said the regulator had provisionally determined that the code-share should only be conditionally authorised with amendments that would minimise likely anticompetitive effects and to ensure that the two airlines continued to compete in the long term.<br/>