Japan Airlines and Delta Airlines deal

Japan Airlines has reached an agreement on a tie-up with Delta Air Lines as the troubled Japanese carrier readies for a court-led rehabilitation, a newspaper said Saturday. The two companies are likely officially to sign the deal, which will allow them to run code-share flights, as soon as JAL's new management endorses it, the Yomiuri Shimbun said, quoting company sources. The agreement means Asia's biggest airline will switch from the Oneworld alliance to the SkyTeam group, to which Delta belongs. JAL and Delta will ask US authorities for antitrust immunity by mid-February, the paper said. If the request is accepted, the two firms will be able to run combined flights over their Pacific routes in what amounts to business integration. The report came after American Airlines and its partners lifted their proposed investment in JAL to 1.4 billion dollars, from a previous offer of 1.1 billion dollars in a bidding war with rival Delta for a stake in JAL.