$8bn enterprise planned
BA is still confident that the US Department of Transportation (DoT) will give the go ahead for its revenue sharing joint venture with American Airlines and Iberia later this year.
Simon Talling-Smith, the airline's executive vp for the Americas, said talks between the oneworld alliance members and the US authorities were going well.
"We have put a lot of time into planning this to make sure we get anti-trust immunity (ATI) later this year," Mr Talling-Smith told ABTN at the National Business Travel Association (NBTA) convention in San Diego.
"The indications are that we are right to be confident."
The DoT has already granted ATI to airlines in two rival alliances to run joint, revenue sharing ventures on transatlantic routes.
Earlier this year, it granted ATI to Continental Airlines, a new member of the Star Alliance whose leading members Lufthansa and United Airlines already operate a joint venture across the Atlantic.
Mr Talling-Smith, who said he was spending much of his time negotiating the venture, said ATI would mean a "really significant deepening of the oneworld alliance."
He added: "We will be acting as partners in a revenue sharing joint venture and one that is worth $8bn between the three of us with BA having a little bit over half.
"This is a big undertaking for us on the most important part of our network where we make most of our profit."
But he acknowledged there were politicians in the US who were quite outspoken against airline alliances.
"One of their points is that alliances must be regularly approved every three years. But I am not sure if that is workable or not.
"Carriers pay an entry cost to the alliances and there would also be exit costs which is a little unfair if the rules are changed after you have joined.
"I find it difficult to believe that that will happen."
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