UK airline BMI has refused to say anything about the newspaper report that told about a possible merger of BMI and Abu Dhabi carrier Etihad.
According to the Sunday Times report, the Abu Dhabi carrier first approached to BMI in summer for a potential deal that valued BMI around £600m.
Strategic Business
It has been told that Etihad has also talked to Germany’s Lufthansa airline that has 30% shares in BMI.
Etihad says that: “It has a number of discussions with several carriers, but a deal has not been decided with anyone.”
After British Airways, most of the flights from London’s Heathrow Airport are operated from BMI.
Just like many other airlines, there is a decrease in BMI profits because of the high prices of aviation fuel.
This decrease in profits margins has made many carriers to seek closer ties with rivals. British Airways is planning to have a tie-up with American Airlines.
Many other carriers, like Italy’s Alitalia, are facing financial problems and trying to have a rescue deal.
During the last year, BMI operated 70 aircraft and flew 10.6 million passengers.
