THE European Commission has said it will have to examine the proposed code sharing alliance between British Airways and American Airlines under EU competition rules.

It also pressed again for a global "open skies" agreement between the EU and the US, a move which has so far been opposed by a majority of EU states. "The development of hub and spoke operations in Europe in cooperation with US airline operators highlights the importance of ensuring that competition is free, fair and reciprocal on both sides of the Atlantic,"

The last year Commission cleared a link between Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) and Lufthansa after the companies agreed to make a few changes toe the deal to allow for competition on the German Scandinavian routes.