US: Airlines request immunity to maintain flights to Venezuela

International airlines have requested antitrust immunity from the United States to allow them to discuss routes to Venezuela, which is blocking ticket revenues from leaving the country, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said on Thursday.

The various airlines currently have approximately $3.8 billion in revenues trapped in Venezuela due to the currency controls. Several airlines have ceased flights to the country entirely.

IATA said the airlines do not want to harm competition and that holding discussions on routes would allow them to keep flights going to Venezuela. It said it was seeking immunity from the United States, which prohibits route and price coordination, because airlines in the Americas were the most impacted by Venezuela’s policies.

The Venezuelan Bolivar has been plummeting, reducing the foreign currency value of the local ticket sales, further eaten away by a massive inflation, which reached 181 percent in 2015 according to official figures.

The request for immunity is for one year after the date of approval and is for airlines authorized to provide services for Venezuela and is not limited to US carriers, the IATA said.

Full Content: CNBC

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