WASHINGTON – The University of Georgia"s bulldog mascot, Uga, gets a special medical procedure to help him fly safely. But many other short-snouted dogs do not fare as well when put on an aircraft, new data shows.

WASHINGTON – The University of Georgia"s bulldog mascot, Uga, gets a special medical procedure to help him fly safely. But many other short-snouted dogs do not fare as well when put on an aircraft, new data shows.

Dogs with pushed-back faces such as English bulldogs and pugs accounted for roughly half the purebred dog deaths on airlines in the past five years, the Transportation Department disclosed Friday.

Overall, at least 122 dog deaths have been reported since May 2005, when U.S. airlines were required to start disclosing them, the department says. The dogs died while being shipped as cargo.

English bulldogs accounted for 25 of the deaths, the single highest number among the 108 purebreds on the list. Pugs were next, with 11 deaths; followed by golden retrievers and labradors, with seven deaths each; French bulldogs, with six; and American Staffordshire terriers, four. Boxers, cockapoos, Pekingese and Pomeranians each accounted for two deaths.

Owners should consult with veterinarians before putting their dogs on planes, the department said. It believes the deaths represent a tiny percentage of the pets shipped on airlines. The department said mixed breeds accounted for four airline deaths and a dozen dogs who died were of unknown breed.

Short-nosed breeds — known as "brachycephalic" in the dog world — have a skull formation that affects their airways, said Dan Bandy of Shawnee, Okla., chairman of the Bulldog Club of America"s health committee.

"The way all dogs cool themselves is basically through respiration, either just panting or the action of breathing in or out, is a method of heat exchange for them," Bandy said. "A dog that has a long snout or a long muzzle has more surface area within its nasal cavity for that heat exchange to take place. So breeds like labradors or collies or those types of dogs with the long muzzles have a more efficient cooling system."

Brachycephalic breeds tend to be heat-intolerant in general, Bandy said. They pretty much have the same amount of tissue and structures within their skulls as long-nosed dogs, but it"s compressed, and that can contribute to encroachment on their airways, he said.

Sonny Seiler of Savannah, Ga., who owns the University of Georgia"s mascot, Uga the English bulldog, said people who fly English bulldogs are taking a risk. Seiler said that"s why he takes precautions. Over the years, seven bulldogs have been the university"s mascot, and Seiler said that before each Uga is a year old, he has a procedure done at the veterinary school to enlarge the dog"s airways.

"They go into the nasal passage and clip muscles and tissue and in essence, what they do is they make a bigger air passage," Seiler said. "It"s a quick procedure, and once you have it done it really eliminates a lot of the problems with the breathing."

"It"s just business as usual with us," Seiler said of Uga"s air travel. "He goes with the team."

Uga routinely flies to the football team"s away games, often in the team"s charter plane or the university"s smaller plane, and is in the cabin or an air-conditioned cargo hold, said Seiler.

The bulldog club"s Bandy said that in addition to trying to cool themselves, dogs may also pant excessively in the cargo hold due to stress or excitement.

Bandy said he has flown one puppy and one adult dog before, both in early spring with no issues. He advises against shipping dogs during hot months, and says owners should make sure the cargo hold is climate-controlled. If dogs are easily stressed or not well-socialized, they are probably not good candidates for air travel, Bandy added.

Dogs shouldn"t be given tranquilizers before flying, both because airlines do not want them tranquilized and because they would be less able to manage their own cooling process, he said.

In all, 144 pet deaths were reported by airlines over the past five years, along with 55 injuries and 33 lost pets.

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FORT WORTH, Texas – New leaders of the pilots" union at American Airlines are toning down the rhetoric against the company, believing that will help them win a new labor contract.

FORT WORTH, Texas – New leaders of the pilots" union at American Airlines are toning down the rhetoric against the company, believing that will help them win a new labor contract.

They say they"re going to stop using billboards and picket lines to blast the company.

The newly elected union leaders said Thursday they want job-protection measures and pay raises in a new contract, although they didn"t give specifics.

American has long suffered from testy labor-management relations that led to two strikes in the 1990s and renewed threats of strikes this year by flight attendants and ground workers.

David Bates, new president of the Allied Pilots Association, said he has reached out to tell American executives he wants open communication with the company.

"We"re talking to each other, and that"s something that hasn"t happened in the past three years," Bates said.

Bates and other top union leaders have been on the job just a week, so it"s hard to know whether the good vibes will fade away and be replaced by the usual bickering between pilots and executives at the nation"s second-biggest airline.

Under past president Lloyd Hill, the pilots rented billboards and picketed outside the offices of large corporate customers to blast their own company. But when three years of confrontation failed to produce a new contract, Hill declined to run for re-election and the pilots picked a more moderate slate led by Bates, 55, a Miami-based Boeing 777 captain who has flown for American since 1984.

Bates said his main goal in contract negotiations is to win pay raises and protect jobs — American like other carriers is looking to cut costs by shifting more flights to regional carriers such as its American Eagle affiliate.

Under Hill, the union proposed 52 percent pay raises designed to offset wage cuts in 2003 and restore salaries to their early-1990s levels, including inflation. American management responded that labor costs were already too high and that the airline industry had changed since the "90s with the rise of low-cost carriers such as Southwest Airlines, AirTran and JetBlue.

Bates hinted that the union could scale back its pay demand, but he first wants to see an offer from American. He said the union also wants its members to fly some regional jets — work currently done by American Eagle pilots.

American and Eagle are owned by AMR Corp., based in Fort Worth. AMR is considering selling or spinning off Eagle.

NEW YORK – Fitch Ratings affirmed its rating for Goodrich Corp. on Wednesday, saying the defense and aviation industry supplier should benefit from a recovering aerospace sector but still faces tighter Pentagon budgets.

NEW YORK – Fitch Ratings affirmed its rating for Goodrich Corp. on Wednesday, saying the defense and aviation industry supplier should benefit from a recovering aerospace sector but still faces tighter Pentagon budgets.

Fitch has a "BBB+" rating for Fitch and an outlook of "stable."

The ratings agency said that markets for equipment makers are improving and it noted production increases by two of Goodrich"s largest customers, airplane manufacturers Boeing and Airbus.

But Fitch also warned the company could be impacted by uncertainty over the direction of Pentagon spending, especially with the focus on cutting costs in the face of large government deficits.

Goodrich shares rose 6 cents to $69.46 in midday trading.

WASHINGTON – Bulldog and pug owners, beware: Short-snouted breeds accounted for roughly half the purebred dog deaths on airplanes in the past five years, government data released Friday shows. That comes as no surprise to the owner of the University of Georgia"s famous mascot, Uga, who gets the dog a special procedure before he flies.

WASHINGTON – Bulldog and pug owners, beware: Short-snouted breeds accounted for roughly half the purebred dog deaths on airplanes in the past five years, government data released Friday shows. That comes as no surprise to the owner of the University of Georgia"s famous mascot, Uga, who gets the dog a special procedure before he flies.

Overall, at least 122 dog deaths were reported since May 2005, when U.S. airlines were required to start disclosing them, the Transportation Department says. The dogs died while being shipped as cargo.

English bulldogs account for the single highest number of deaths among the 108 purebreds on the list: 25. Pugs were next, with 11 deaths, followed by golden retrievers and labradors, with seven deaths each, French bulldogs with six, and American Staffordshire terriers, four.

Boxers, cockapoos, Pekingese and Pomeranians accounted for two deaths each.

Owners should consult with veterinarians before putting their dogs on planes, the department said. It believes the deaths represent a tiny percentage of the pets shipped on airlines.

Short-nosed breeds — known as "brachycephalic" in the dog world — have a skull formation that affects their airways, said Dan Bandy of Shawnee, Okla., chairman of the Bulldog Club of America"s health committee.

"The way all dogs cool themselves is basically through respiration, either just panting or the action of breathing in or out, is a method of heat exchange for them," Bandy said. "A dog that has a long snout or a long muzzle has more surface area within its nasal cavity for that heat exchange to take place. So breeds like labradors or collies or those types of dogs with the long muzzles have a more efficient cooling system."

Brachycephalic breeds tend to be heat-intolerant in general, Bandy said. They pretty much have the same amount of tissue and structures within their skulls as long-nosed dogs, but it"s compressed, and that can contribute to encroachment on their airways, he said.

Sonny Seiler of Savannah, Ga., who owns the University of Georgia"s mascot, Uga the bulldog, said people who fly English bulldogs are taking a risk. Seiler said that"s why he takes precautions before flying his dogs. Before each Uga is a year old and flies for the first time, Seiler has a procedure done at the University of Georgia veterinary school to enlarge the dog"s airways.

"They go into the nasal passage and clip muscles and tissue and in essence, what they do is they make a bigger air passage," Seiler said. "It"s a quick procedure, and once you have it done it really eliminates a lot of the problems with the breathing."

Uga routinely flies to the football team"s away games, often in the team"s charter plane or the university"s smaller plane, and is in the cabin or an air-conditioned cargo hold, said Seiler, who is now searching for the eighth Uga. The seventh died last football season, and his half-brother Russ, the backup, is the acting Uga during the quest for No. 8.

"It"s just business as usual with us," Seiler said of Uga"s air travel. "He goes with the team."

The bulldog club"s Bandy said that in addition to trying to cool themselves, dogs may also pant excessively in the cargo hold due to stress or excitement.

Bandy said he has flown one puppy and one adult dog before, both in early spring with no issues. He advises against shipping dogs during hot months, and says owners should make sure the cargo hold is climate-controlled. If dogs are easily stressed or not well-socialized, they are probably not good candidates for air travel, Bandy added.

The Transportation Department said mixed breeds accounted for four airline deaths and a dozen dogs who died were of unknown breed.

In all, 144 pet deaths were reported by airlines over the past five years, along with 55 injuries and 33 lost pets.

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Transportation Department:

The Bulldog Club of America:

WASHINGTON – Finding the best deal on a flight has become a lot more difficult, thanks to hefty baggage and service fees that consumers often don"t know about until they show up at the airline counter, congressional investigators say.

WASHINGTON – Finding the best deal on a flight has become a lot more difficult, thanks to hefty baggage and service fees that consumers often don"t know about until they show up at the airline counter, congressional investigators say.

Those fees are not part of the ticket price, meaning they can easily go unseen until it"s too late for the consumer to shop around. Amounting to billions of dollars for the airlines, the fees also are exempt from an excise tax, and some lawmakers want to reclaim that money for the Treasury.

Airlines, travel agents, online travel services and other ticket distribution channels should be required to disclose fees for checked baggage, changed reservations and other services in a clear and consistent manner, the Government Accountability Office said in a report out Wednesday.

Since 2007, many airlines have been charging for services that were traditionally included in the price of a ticket. That"s improved airline bottom lines in a tough economy but raised the ire of travelers who find themselves nickeled-and-dimed to substantially higher costs.

Besides checked bags, some airlines charge fees for seat selection, extra leg room, prime spots in boarding lines, blankets, pillows, drinks and meals. "Those fees can be an unexpected shock totaling hundreds of dollars," said Charles Leocha, director of the Consumer Travel Alliance.

In the last budget year, 10 U.S. airlines collected $7.8 billion in such fees, congressional accountants say. The leader was Delta Air Lines, the world"s largest airline, with $1.6 billion.

Rep. James Oberstar, D-Minn., who led a House hearing Wednesday on the matter, told airlines that the public will push back "and then Congress will act" if the industry does not show restraint with the fees. "That"s not a threat," he said. "That"s history."

Airlines say fees benefit passengers because they allow airlines to keep ticket prices down and consumers pay only for services they use.

"This is a deregulated industry and this is an industry that should be able to charge whatever it opts to charge for services," said David Castelveter, a spokesman for the Air Transport Association, which represents major airlines.

"There is no reason why one passenger should subsidize another for a service he or she doesn"t consume," Castelveter said. He said airlines already disclose the fees consumers are most concerned about, like checked bag fees, on their websites.

But the GAO"s Gerald Dillingham told the hearing airline fees "are not very transparent."

American, Continental, Delta, US Airways and United all charge $25 for the first checked bag, and $35 for the second, according to the booking website Kayak. JetBlue charges $10 and up for additional legroom. AirTran charges $6 for passengers to get seat assignments in advance, and sells exit row seats for $20 extra. Snacks at most airlines run $2 to $5, meals a bit more.

The Transportation Department is considering requiring airlines to disclose two ticket prices to passengers: a "full fare" with all mandatory charges like taxes, and "full fare-plus" with the extras.

Computer reservation systems used by travel agents and ticketing services are capable of providing clear information on fees that allows consumers to compare total trip prices. That hasn"t happened because airlines won"t supply the travel industry with fees, Kyle Moore, vice president of Sabre Holdings, which owns Travelocity, told the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

Ben Baldanza, president and CEO of low-cost carrier Spirit Airlines, acknowledged that his airline doesn"t provide ticketing services with fee information because he doesn"t want to be at a competitive disadvantage with other airlines whose prices might appear lower because they exclude the cost of extras.

Moore said there would be no such concern if all airlines were required to supply ticketing services with the information.

The vast majority of consumers buy tickets based on the lowest fare, witnesses told the committee. About half the airline tickets sold in the U.S. are bought through ticketing services.

The government charges a 7.5 percent excise tax on airline tickets to pay for the air traffic system. The IRS ruled last year that optional fees aren"t subject to the excise tax.

The report says the government could have raised $186 million last year if the checked bag fees alone had been taxed, an amount likely to grow as airlines charge more fees.

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AP Transportation Writer Samantha Bomkamp in New York contributed to this report.

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SEATTLE – The global airline industry is making a robust economic recovery and will need $3.6 trillion in new aircraft over the next 20 years, Boeing Co. said Thursday in its annual long-range forecast.

SEATTLE – The global airline industry is making a robust economic recovery and will need $3.6 trillion in new aircraft over the next 20 years, Boeing Co. said Thursday in its annual long-range forecast.

In all, airlines will need 30,900 new jets between now and 2029, with more than two-thirds of the demand for smaller single-aisle jets such as Boeing"s 737 and Airbus" A320, the company said in its 2010 Current Market Outlook.

Airlines have seen a rebound in passenger and freight traffic this year and should return to profitability in 2011, Boeing officials say.

"For passenger traffic in 2010 we"re expecting to see a 5-6 percent improvement over where we were last year; in terms of cargo, somewhere around 14 percent or more," Randy Tinseth, Boeing Commercial Airplanes vice president for marketing, said in a recent briefing in advance of next week"s Farnborough International Airshow in Britain.

Airlines have been able to manage their way through the economic downturn fairly well by keeping costs down, he said.

"We"re starting to see more airlines returning to profitability — returning to profitability really before we expected it," Tinseth said.

That"s one reason Boeing is increasing its aircraft production rate in 2012, he said. Boeing is boosting its 737 rate to 35 planes, up from 31.5 currently, and will increase production of its 777 and 747 widebody aircraft earlier than planned. It also is building a temporary "surge" production line at its Everett, Washington, assembly plant for its new and long-delayed 787 jetliner. That"s in addition to its existing 787 line at Everett and a 787 plant being built in Charleston, South Carolina.

Tinseth said financing for new aircraft is improving and high fuel prices have airlines looking to retire some older planes and consider new and more efficient ones. Airlines also are preparing for an upswing by investing more in passenger amenities, especially first and business class upgrades.

World air travel has grown about 5 percent a year since 1977 and Boeing expects that will continue, he said.

Boeing is being more conservative than the International Air Transport Association, which said last month that global industry profits should reach $2.5 billion this year. Just three months earlier, the industry group forecast a loss of $2.8 billion. The industry lost about $9.4 billion in 2009.

The IATA forecast passenger growth of 7 percent to a total of 2.4 billion passengers in 2010 and cargo growth at 18.5 percent.

Both IATA and Boeing say Asia and North America are leading the recovery, with Europe lagging behind. IATA says strikes at some airlines, the debt crisis and the volcanic ash cloud that caused major disruptions this spring are hurting Europe"s recovery.

Boeing"s 20-year forecast is slightly brighter than last year"s, when it predicted demand for 29,000 aircraft worth $3.2 trillion for 2009-2028.

This year"s report says 21,160 single-aisle jets worth $1.7 trillion will be needed, along with 7,100 twin-aisle planes such as the 777, 787 and Airbus" A330-340 family, worth $1.6 trillion. The world will need 720 large aircraft such as Boeing"s 747 and Airbus" superjumbo A380, worth $220 billion, and just 1,1920 regional jets — those under 90 seats — worth $60 billion.

In its long-range forecast issued last September, Airbus predicted about 25,000 new planes worth $3.1 trillion will be delivered from 2009 to 2028. Those figures omit smaller regional jets.

Airbus, which has banked heavily on its 525-passenger A380, differs sharply from Boeing in predicting more than 1,700 large planes will be needed.

BRUSSELS (AFP) – Europe's competition watchdog cleared the way for major tie-ups in the ailing airline industry on Wednesday, giving green lights to a British Airways and Iberia merger and a trans-Atlantic alliance.

BRUSSELS (AFP) – Europe's competition watchdog cleared the way for major tie-ups in the ailing airline industry on Wednesday, giving green lights to a British Airways and Iberia merger and a trans-Atlantic alliance.

BA, Iberia and American Airlines agreed last year to team up on flights between Europe and North America in order to cope with soaring fuel costs and falling demand.

The British and Spanish airlines also took a step further, signing a merger deal in April to create one of the world's biggest airlines to compete more effectively in the fast-consolidating aviation sector.

"Today's reality is one of increased consolidation in the sector due to the difficulties and changes that the sector has had to cope with," European competition commissioner Joaquin Almunia told a press conference.

The BA-Iberia tie-up will create Europe's second-biggest airline by market value after Lufthansa, combining Iberia's strong position in Latin America with BA's presence in Africa, Asia and North America.

The European Commission said its investigation found that the combined group would face sufficient competition from other carriers on the key routes between London and Spain as well as long-haul flights.

"The Commission therefore concluded that the transaction will not significantly impede effective competition on any of the markets concerned by the proposed merger," the EU regulator said.

BA said the merger is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

In a separate decision, the commission paved the way for a trans-Atlantic joint venture between "oneworld" alliance members British Airways, Iberia and American Airlines after the companies committed to competition safeguards.

The EU regulator had opened a probe in April 2009 over concerns that the alliance could harm consumers on trans-Atlantic routes.

To ease concerns, the airlines offered to free up landing and take-off slots at London Heathrow airport to facilitate the entry or expansion of competitors on routes between the British capital and New York, Boston, Dallas and Miami.

The commission said it decided to close its investigation after a market test concluded that the airlines had offered "suitable" remedies.

"This is a pragmatic decision so that we can get the joint business up and running as soon as possible," said BA chief executive Willie Walsh.

"The slot commitments provide a further guarantee that there will be no possible loss of competition as a result of our joint business," he said.

BA said it expected the US Department of Transportation to decided "shortly" whether to grant the airlines anti-trust immunity, with the hope of launching the joint business in the autumn.

The commission decided to make these commitments binding for 10 years and said it would appoint a trustee to oversee their implementation.

Almunia said the decision ensures that "the around 2.5 million passengers that use the London-New-York and other affected routes each year continue to benefit from a choice of frequencies and competitive prices."

Airlines have turned to alliances as takeovers and tie-ups are fraught with difficulty, with many countries imposing limits on foreign ownership so as to favour the national carrier and protect their domestic markets.

The alliance system was set up in part to get around such hurdles and to allow cooperation so that member airlines could enjoy the advantages of scale provided by belonging to a bigger group.

Airlines were pummelled by the global recession, losing nearly 10 billion euros last year. But the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said they would be profitable this year for the first time since 2007.

NEW YORK – There were five flights stuck on the tarmac for three hours or more in May, the first month under a new rule banning lengthy tarmac delays, the government said Thursday.

NEW YORK – There were five flights stuck on the tarmac for three hours or more in May, the first month under a new rule banning lengthy tarmac delays, the government said Thursday.

It will be several weeks to a month before any fines may be levied against the airlines for violations, as the Department of Transportation investigates. The maximum fine is $27,500 per passenger for airlines that do not return their planes to the terminal when they are delayed on the tarmac for three hours or more. There are exceptions for safety and security reasons.

Tarmac delays have fallen significantly since the government announced the new rule. While there were five flights stuck for more than three hours in May, that compares with 35 three-hour delays in May 2009. Tarmac delays also dropped in April compared with a year earlier.

United Airlines operated four of the five flights that were stuck this May. One of those United flights stayed on the tarmac for almost five hours. All four of the United flights were bound for Denver on May 26 when severe thunderstorms and hail swept through Colorado. Denver International Airport had 30-to-60-minute delays on average that day and limited use of runways.

United spokeswoman Jean Medina said all four of the flights were diverted to Colorado Springs where weather caused additional delays. She added that all the customers were given the chance to get off the planes.

Thunderstorms are one of the main causes of flight delays because they are difficult for airlines and airport officials to predict.

The fifth was a Delta Air Lines flight from Atlanta to Dallas-Fort Worth on May 28. That flight sat for two hours in Atlanta when the tarmac was closed for lightning. Delta spokesman Anthony Black said air traffic control denied the pilot"s request to turn back to the gate, and the plane sat on the tarmac for another hour before it ultimately took off.

Overall the on-time performance of U.S. carriers declined in May from the same month a year ago. Flights were on-time 79.9 percent of the time in May, down from 85.3 percent in April and 80.5 percent in May 2009.

US Airways was the most successful major airline in getting travelers to their destinations on time, 85.3 percent of the time. Hawaiian and Alaska Airlines had the highest on-time rates overall in May.

Comair, which operates as Delta Connection, had the worst ranking in May with 67.1 percent of its flights arriving on-time.

Airlines also canceled more flights in May compared with the month or year before. Carriers canceled 1.2 percent of their scheduled domestic flights during the month, compared with 0.9 percent in May of last year and 0.7 percent this April.

Customers also appeared to be less satisfied with their air travel experiences during May. DOT received 801 complaints from customers about airline service in May, up 22 percent from a year ago.

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AP Airlines Writer Joshua Freed in Minneapolis contributed to this report.

BRUSSELS – British Airways and Iberia on Wednesday won the European Union"s regulatory approval to merge and to team up with American Airlines to share more of their lucrative trans-Atlantic routes.

BRUSSELS – British Airways and Iberia on Wednesday won the European Union"s regulatory approval to merge and to team up with American Airlines to share more of their lucrative trans-Atlantic routes.

The companies say the two deals will help them cut costs and survive a tough business climate as they struggle with falling passenger numbers and industrial unrest.

British Airways" merger with Iberia will create Europe"s third-largest airline with a market value of around $7.5 billion. They will keep their existing brand identities and claim the deal will create savings of (EURO)400 million ($530 million) a year by the fifth year.

The two loss-making airlines are among many struggling to survive after a fall in demand from both business and leisure travelers in the wake of the global credit squeeze. Those who are still traveling have increasingly turned to the cheaper fares of no-frills carriers.

BA and Iberia also plan to expand their oneworld alliance with American Airlines, which currently coordinates how they sell and operate flights between the 27-nation European Union and the United States. They will now also jointly manage schedules, capacity and pricing on flights from Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Norway and Switzerland as well.

BA and Iberia said they expect the U.S. Department of Transportation to clear the deal shortly, allowing the airlines to start the joint business in the fall.

Bob Atkinson of travel Web site travelsupermarket.com said the deal could potentially create "more affordable fares, better connections and improved service" — but warned that savings may be hard for the companies to secure. BA is currently warring with workers over cutbacks.

The European Commission said it saw no antitrust worries with BA and Iberia merging since they don"t compete directly on many routes and would continue to face rivalry where they do — on flights from London to Madrid and Barcelona.

The tie-up will give them greater economies of scale as they lag behind other major airlines in Europe, following Air France"s tie-up with KLM which made them second to Germany"s Lufthansa as the largest European airline by revenue.

Regulators did see more problems with the oneworld deal and only cleared it after the three airlines made a binding promise to cede valuable take-off and landing slots to rivals to help them start new routes between London and New York, Boston, Dallas and Miami from next year.

Some 2.5 million people fly these routes every year.

The commitment to satisfy the EU requirements will last ten years and the companies can be fined up to 10 percent of yearly global turnover if they don"t stick to their commitments. Regulators may review it after five years.

The three airlines will have to cede slots — but can demand payment for them — at New York"s John F Kennedy airport and at either London Gatwick or Heathrow only if rivals wanting to start new services to the four U.S. cities can"t buy them easily, which is usually the case.

Slots can cost up to 30 million pounds a pair at Heathrow, one of the world"s most congested airports.

BA says the three daily London-New York slots will only be made available if the number of airlines flying the route falls below "currently announced levels."

Rival airlines will also be allowed to combine one of their flights with one from the oneworld alliance when selling a return ticket and to get "favorable terms" for connecting flights for BA or Iberia"s short-haul flights in Europe.

This would allow an airline to sell passengers a ticket from Manchester to London on British Airways and then connect them to its own London to New York flight.

Travelers flying on the new routes would also be able to pick up air miles for frequent flyer programs run by BA, American Airlines or Iberia.

The EU"s executive said the offer was necessary to eliminate antitrust worries that the wider oneworld deal would allow the carriers to control trans-Atlantic routes and hike prices. It said there are now opportunities for new companies to enter the market.

It blocked similar efforts between BA and American Airlines to share routes in 1998 and 2002.

EU Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said regulators could now approve the deal because the market has" changed fundamentally" as a result of a recent Open Skies agreement between the EU and the U.S. which has allowed far more airlines to fly between both regions.

Antitrust agencies on both sides of the Atlantic have long been suspicious about how airline alliances such as oneworld and Star Alliance affect prices for flying between Europe and the United States. The EU is still investigating the Star Alliance run by Lufthansa, Continental, United and Air Canada as well as SkyTeam, which combines Air France/KLM and Delta/Northwest.

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AP Business Writer Jane Wardell in London and Associated Press Writer Ciaran Giles in Madrid contributed to this story.