WASHINGTON — The fate of an $11 billion deal to create the world’s largest airline might hinge in large part on one airport, but not just any airport: It’s the one right across the Potomac River from the nation’s capital.
When the Justice Department sued in August to block the merger of American Airlines and US Airways, it cited the deal’s potential impact on Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. The combined airline would control 69 percent of the takeoff and landing slots at the terminal, a deal-breaker for the department’s antitrust division.
“Blocking the merger will preserve current competition and service at Reagan National Airport, including flights that US Airways currently offers to large and small communities around the country,” Assistant Attorney General Bill Baer said when he announced the lawsuit in August.
While the two sides are preparing to go to trial late this month, they brought in a mediator last week to work out possible solutions. If the airlines and the government settle the case before going to court, aviation observers think that any deal would involve the merged airline giving up some of its dominance in Washington.
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