1 Delta Air Lines Inc. and British-based Virgin Atlantic Airways won final federal approval Thursday for a joint ticketing deal that gives Delta its long-sought access to London's Heathrow Airport.
2 The Department of Transportation had been expected to approve the agreement five months ago, but took no action. Delta, which expressed anger at the time, said Thursday the DOT gave no indication why it was giving permission now.
3 Richard Mintz, a DOT spokesman in Washington, said the government decided the agreement would benefit passengers on both sides of the Atlantic.
4 Mintz declined to comment specifically on the delay. Many industry analysts have suggested that the government hoped to pressure Great Britain to give U.S. carriers more access to the British market.
5 The deal with Virgin is a 'code sharing' agreement similar to arrangements Delta has with other overseas carriers. In such deals, an airline buys a block of seats on the other carrier's flights, then sells them to travelers through its own marketing system.
6 The agreement calls for Delta to buy about dlrs 150 million worth of seats a year, according to Virgin. Delta spokesman Todd Clay said that figure was consistent with the amount of business it expects on the U.S.-London flights.
7 London-bound Delta passengers from seven U.S. cities -- Los Angeles, Newark, New York, Orlando, Miami, San Francisco and Boston -- will fly on Virgin jets. Delta will continue to use its own planes to fly to London's Gatwick Airport from Atlanta and Cincinnati.
8 Delta has struggled financially in the trans-Atlantic market since it became a major player with the 1991 acquisition of Pan American World Airways' European business. The Pan Am routes did not include any to Heathrow, a major gateway to Europe.
9 'We were at a competitive disadvantage,' Clay said, noting that rivals United Airlines and American Airlines fly in and out of Heathrow.
10 The airlines said they would put the joint deal in effect as soon as possible.
11 'This agreement will strengthen competition among all carriers serving the U.S. and U.K.,' Delta Chairman Ronald W. Allen said. 'We see it making Delta stronger in the trans-Atlantic marketplace, while enhancing our efforts to make these assets consistently profitable.'
12 Virgin Chairman Richard Branson said the agreement allows his company to 'remain independent and competitive in the face of global alliances, while giving our customers all the benefits of flying with a major carrier.'
13 The Delta-Virgin agreement previously was approved by the British government and the U.S. Justice Department.
14 Also Thursday, the DOT gave authorization for American Airlines to fly between Chicago and Birmingham, England, and for Tower Air to fly between New York and London's Stansted Airport.

Delta Air Lines Inc . and British - based Virgin Atlantic Airways won final federal approval Thursday for a joint ticketing deal that gives Delta its long - sought access to London ' s Heathrow Airport .
long - sought access to London ' s Heathrow Airport
Why was Delta wanting access to Heathrow?