Business
Search of Airfare Booking Sites Shows Identical Pricing
A Priceline.com search for nonstop roundtrip fares between Los Angeles International and John F. Kennedy International in New York show that three competing carriers, American, Delta and JetBlue, offer the same price. (Daniel Desrochers/McClatchy)
WASHINGTON (McClatchy) – Amid a federal probe of airline pricing practices, a search on popular air travel booking websites shows virtually identical ticket pricing between popular city pairs on several carriers.
The Justice Department confirmed Wednesday that it is investigating “unlawful coordination” among major airlines. The Associated Press first reported the probe, which seeks to determine whether the few remaining carriers have colluded to keep ticket prices high.
American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and Southwest Airlines all confirmed that they have received letters from the Justice Department and would cooperate with the investigation.
Those four carriers control about 80 percent of the domestic air travel market.
