US DOJ wants to revoke antitrust immunity for Delta-Aeromexico joint venture 

The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has supported a proposal to revoke the antitrust immunity for the joint venture between Delta Air Lines and Aeromexico. 

In a series of comments published on August 11, 2025, the DOJ endorsed the position previously expressed by the US Department of Transportation (DOT) that the two partner carriers should no longer be granted antitrust immunity to jointly coordinate operations between their respective home countries. 

In 2016, Delta Air Lines and Aeromexico, both members of the SkyTeam Alliance, were granted the right to run their US-Mexico operations within the framework of a joint venture. 

However, this antitrust immunity must be renewed every few years and it is the latest renewal application which has been met with opposition from the US authorities. 

In its initial assessment, now endorsed by the US Department of Justice, the US Department of Transportation found that the current market conditions “have in effect removed the necessary precondition for the consideration of an [antitrust immunity] application or continuation of an existing immunized joint venture.” 

In particular, both the DOJ and DOT have taken issue with what they regard as restrictive access conditions at Benito Juárez International Airport (MEX), which limit the amount of effective competition on routes linking it to US destinations. 

Both US government departments have also accused the Government of Mexico of having non-transparent and restrictive slot allocation practices which, they claim, has resulted in limited competition in US-Mexico services. 

According to date from Cirium’s SRS Analyzer,14 airlines are operating scheduled flights on the US-Mexico market in August 2025,offering nearly four million seats combined.  

Delta Air Lines and Aeromexico account for around 20% of this capacity, with nearly 800,000 seats being offered for travel between US and Mexico destinations in this same period.  

Combined, the two carriers are the largest player in this market, although individual airlines such as American Airlines and Volaris get close to this mark. The post US DOJ wants to revoke antitrust immunity for Delta-Aeromexico joint venture  appeared first on AeroTime.

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