Brazil Airlines TAM, Varig to Create New Airline Thursday February 6, 9:40 am ET BRASILIA (Dow Jones)--Brazil's Viacao Aerea Rio Grandense SA , or Varig, and TAM Linhas Aereas (E.TAI) Thursday said they have reached an agreement to create a new airline. The companies didn't provide a name for the new carrier and stopped short of calling it a merger, but suggested all of their respective aircraft would be included in the new company. "Through this agreement, the companies affirm their mutual interest in seeking a joint solution that begins the restructuring of Brazil's civil aviation sector," the companies said in a statement. The deal will "establish a new publicly traded company with private control shared among the partners with professional management and a high standard of corporate governance." The long-rumored deal between the country's two largest airlines would include Varig's regional units Nordeste and RioSul. The deal will combine Varig's 116 plane fleet with TAM's 102 aircraft to create a 218-plane airline that carries about 29.1 million passengers a year. _________________________________________________________________ Add photos to your messages with MSN 8. Get 2 months FREE*. http://join.msn.com/?page=features/featuredemail