British Airways and the Spanish airline Iberia are currently holding talks about a possible merger.  The brands would be kept separate, but both airlines would become part of the same group, allowing them to cut costs.  Interestingly, British Airways currently owns 13.2% of Iberia, while Iberia own 2.99% of British Airways.

If the merger did go ahead, it is expected that BA would concentrate on the Middle and Far East, while Iberia would look more towards South America and Africa.  Virgin Atlantic have voiced some concerns, the main ones being that this would mean less competition and therefore less choice for consumers, and that the two combined airlines would control about half of all take off and landing slots at Heathrow.

Obviously with fuel prices the way they are at the moment, it is unlikely that any savings made if the merger did go ahead would be passed onto us: the business travellers, but you never know!

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