Is Continental Airlines involved in an antitrust case?
The Justice Department’s belated attack on a plan by two U.S. airlines to cooperate within a larger alliance of air carriers took many by surprise, but the Obama administration has indicated for months it planned a more aggressive approach to antitrust enforcement. Nearly two months ago, the Transportation Department gave preliminary clearance to a proposed arrangement by United Airlines parent UAL Corp. and Continental Airlines Inc. to cooperate on routes world-wide with some fellow members of the Star Alliance. Final approval had been expected. Then, late last week the Justice Department filed a 55-page objection urging more-limited cooperation between the two carriers and their Star partners. Justice’s action came weeks after the original deadline for comments on the plan because the department’s new antitrust chief, Christine Varney, and her team weren’t yet in place when DOT officials were studying the airlines’ proposal, said administration officials familiar with the matter. Whi
