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JetBlue Airways (Nasdaq: JBLU) and American Airlines (Nasdaq: AAL) is trying to keep some elements of their alliance covering flights across the US Northeast after a judge agreed to block the project on antitrust grounds last month.
JetBlue (JBLU) and American They are asking to keep code-sharing and loyalty plans in place under the Northeast Alliance, according to A Court filing Friday.
The payment from the airlines follows US District Court Judge Leo Sorokin Last month, the Department of Justice approved the Justice Department’s request to permanently oblige airlines to continue the Northeast Alliance, effective thirty days from the date of the order, which was issued on May 19.
“This case calls for a direct injunction that allows for the orderly liquidation of aspects of the new energy law that this court has determined to be illegal, while minimizing consumer disruption,” the airlines said in the court filing.
Six states and the District of Columbia joined the Justice Department to file an antitrust lawsuit in 2021 to block a high-profile 2020 agreement between the two airlines to sell seats on each other’s flights along certain routes.
JetBlue (JBLU) and American Airlines (AAL) may decide to appeal Judge Sorokin’s ruling in its entirety. The airline told Bloomberg on Friday that JetBlue is still considering appealing the ruling. American Airlines said it plans to appeal the ruling.
“We have a legal system that asks for appeal, and we will,” US CEO Robert Isom said at the Bernstein Strategic Decision Conference late last month.
The end of the Northeast Alliance also comes as the Justice Department filed an antitrust lawsuit to block JetBlue Airways (JBLU)’s proposed merger with Spirit Airlines (SAVE) in March. The complaint alleged that combining the two companies would be a negative development for consumers, raising prices and eliminating competition.