Lawyers from the US Justice Department have spent weeks arguing that an alliance between American Airlines and JetBlue Airways would cost consumers $700 million.
The government alleged that a partnership between American and JetBlue, known as the Northeast Alliance, would offer them outsized control over airport gates and flight slots in the region.
A government economist Nathan Miller said the government’s estimate of consumer harm included only traffic at John F. Kennedy International Airport and LaGuardia Airport but overlooked Newark Liberty International Airport, one of the region’s busiest hubs, Bloomberg reports.
The US District Judge Leo Sorokin sought metrics illustrating changes within the two carriers’ fleets and routes serving New York City and Boston before and since their Northeast Alliance took effect in early 2021.
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