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 The slots at the popular, gate-restricted airport that serves the
political and business communities are among those American Airlines
Group Inc <AAL.O> was required to sell to win antitrust approval for
its merger with US Airways.
The win by Virgin comes after bidding last month that awarded 54
slots at Reagan National to Dallas-based Southwest Airlines Co <LUV.N>
and 40 to New York-based JetBlue Airways Corp <JBLU.O>, including 16
that JetBlue had been leasing.
Earlier Wednesday, Spirit Airlines Inc <SAVE.O> said it had lost a
bid for the slots. A slot is the right to operate one takeoff or
landing.
Virgin, which counts Richard Branson's Virgin Group as a minority
investor, said the new Reagan slots would not allow it to add
nonstop service to San Francisco. It said it would announce flight
schedule changes this month based on the slots at Reagan and
LaGuardia International Airport in New York.
American's former parent, AMR Corp, and US Airways agreed to give up
slots at Reagan National and LaGuardia as well as gates at other
airports under a settlement of an antitrust lawsuit by the U.S.
Justice Department seeking to block their combination. The merger,
completed in December, formed the world's largest airline.
Southwest won 22 of the LaGuardia slots while Virgin America won the
remaining 12.
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American Airlines also agreed to give up two gates at each of the
following airports: Chicago O'Hare International Airport, Los
Angeles International Airport, Boston Logan Airport, Miami
International Airport and Dallas Love Field.
American and US Airways announced last year that they planned to
merge. The Justice Department sued to stop the deal, saying it would
lead to higher fares. The sides announced a settlement on November
12 after the airlines agreed to a long list of divestitures.
The Justice Department argued that the slot and gate sales would
give low-cost competitors better access to some of the country's
busiest airports. Analysts, however, said that a relatively small
number of flights would be affected and any change would be
incremental.
(Reporting by Diane Bartz; editing by Alwyn Scott, Jonathan Oatis and Lisa Shumaker)
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