British Airways, American Airlines and Iberia were reported to be preparing to apply for antitrust immunity from the United States.

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It is also working hard to get its main alliance with American Airlines (AA) blessed with antitrust immunity on both sides of the Atlantic.

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The two airlines are reportedly now joining forces with Iberia, in which British Airways holds a 13.5% stake, and will be applying for antitrust immunity again.

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The decade-long quest by American Airlines and British Airways to collaborate on ticket prices and flight schedules on transatlantic routes was given preliminary antitrust immunity in the United States.

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The two airlines are already seeking antitrust immunity in America and in Europe for a tie-up with American Airlines, which would see all three co-ordinating over costs and revenues on transatlantic routes.

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They applied for antitrust immunity in 1997 and 2001 from the United States Department of Transport, but on both occasions the regulator said they had to give up a large number of landing slots at Heathrow, a price that British Airways considered too high to pay.

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When the two airlines announced their deal, they requested immunity from antitrust laws in America in order to co-operate closely on fares and so on.

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