American Airlines said preparations for an investment in Japan Airlines Corp. are at an advanced stage after Delta Air Lines Inc. announced a package of incentives to lure the Asian carrier into a new alliance.

Japan Air, as the airline is known, would face a regulatory risk in leaving American’s Oneworld group and joining Delta’s SkyTeam, Theo Panagiotoulias, American’s Pacific director, told reporters today in Tokyo.
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The European Commission Friday cleared Deutsche Lufthansa AG’s plan to buy Austrian Airlines AG, subject to conditions.

To remove competition concerns, Lufthansa must reduce the number of flights from Vienna to Frankfurt, Munich, Stuttgart, Cologne and Brussels, allowing new entrants to offer flights on those routes. (continue reading…)