The Justice Department is giving Britain's largest airline a break, even as it faces one the largest antitrust fines in years.
Representatives of British Airways are scheduled to plead guilty Thursday to two counts of conspiracy and face a likely fine of $300 million for colluding with rival Virgin Atlantic over fuel surcharges on international flights.
Federal prosecutors, in court documents filed last week, said the fines could have been as high as nearly $900 million if not for the airline's cooperation in the investigation.
"As a foreign corporation with headquarters outside the United States, BA could have retained highly relevant documents in its foreign offices and refused to cooperate," prosecutors wrote. "It chose, however, to assist the United States early in its investigation in a highly significant and useful way."
Earlier this month, authorities in London and Washington announced nearly $550 million in combined fines for the airline as part of parallel trans-Atlantic investigations.
Britain's Office of Fair Trading fined the company $246 million and a federal judge is expected to sign off on the $300 million U.S. fine Thursday.
story here
Representatives of British Airways are scheduled to plead guilty Thursday to two counts of conspiracy and face a likely fine of $300 million for colluding with rival Virgin Atlantic over fuel surcharges on international flights.
Federal prosecutors, in court documents filed last week, said the fines could have been as high as nearly $900 million if not for the airline's cooperation in the investigation.
"As a foreign corporation with headquarters outside the United States, BA could have retained highly relevant documents in its foreign offices and refused to cooperate," prosecutors wrote. "It chose, however, to assist the United States early in its investigation in a highly significant and useful way."
Earlier this month, authorities in London and Washington announced nearly $550 million in combined fines for the airline as part of parallel trans-Atlantic investigations.
Britain's Office of Fair Trading fined the company $246 million and a federal judge is expected to sign off on the $300 million U.S. fine Thursday.
story here
