Air France-KLM no longer set to acquire a stake in Virgin Atlantic

While the trans-Atlantic joint venture between Air France-KLM, Delta Air Lines and Virgin Atlantic is set to move forward following its Nov. 21 regulatory approval, Air France-KLM announced on Wednesday that it no longer seeks to acquire a stake in Virgin Atlantic as part of the deal.

The Air France-KLM statement clarified that the acquisition of a Virgin Atlantic stake “is no longer necessary” to the JV, and that the agreement the airlines are negotiating will not be impacted by the decision.

The planned JV is designed to enhance the trans-Atlantic capacity of the U.S.-based Delta Air Lines, as well as that of European carriers Virgin Atlantic and Air France-KLM. To that end, Virgin Atlantic Cargo and Delta Cargo announced earlier this year that they will increase flight frequencies between Gatwick (LGW), Heathrow (LHR) and Manchester (MAN) airports to U.S. destinations beginning in 2020, and also opened a new joint export facility at LHR.