OFT Clears Path For EasyJet Acquisition Of GB Airways

The Office of Fair Trading has given easyJet the go-ahead for its proposed takeover of GB Airways. The takeover will not now be referred to the Competition Commission after the OFT ruled that enough "potential competitors" are represented at Gatwick and other London airports, ensuring customers have sufficient competition.

Tour operators had suggested that fares on routes now flown by easyJet and GB Airways would rise by up to 10% after the acquisition and while the OFT agreed that the deal would give easyJet a dominant position at Gatwick, it also noted that there was sufficient competition on routes from London to Alicante/Murcia, Malaga, Faro, Ibiza, Mahon, Palma and Marrakech.

A statement from the OFT confirmed the decision: "The likelihood of further entry and/or expansion on the routes is sufficient to constrain the parties [easyJet and GB Airways] post-merger."

EasyJet first announced the proposed takeover in October 2007, stating its aim to complete the acquisition and all integration procedures before the autumn of 2008.The 32 routes serviced by GB Airways at Gatwick and Heathrow will considerably add to the 339 routes that easyJet currently serves, with cheap flights largely operating from Gatwick.