This article from NYTimes.com has been sent to you by psa188@xxxxxxxxx /-------------------- advertisement -----------------------\ Explore more of Starbucks at Starbucks.com. http://www.starbucks.com/default.asp?ci=1015 \----------------------------------------------------------/ British Airways Shows Interest in Iberia October 6, 2003 MADRID, Oct. 5 - Days after Air France and KLM said they would merge, surpassing British Airways as Europe's biggest airline, Rod Eddington, the chief executive of British Airways, said in a newspaper interview published Sunday that his company might merge with Iberia Airlines of Spain. "Iberia and British Airways, in many ways, are natural partners in Europe," he said in the interview with the leading Spanish daily, El País. "Spain is a strategic market for Great Britain. I think we have a good opportunity, and so I would like us to end up in each other's arms." He declined to give a timetable for a merger, but suggested it would not happen soon. "We are going to spend the next 6, 12 or 18 months working and watching the success of the strategy adopted by Air France and KLM," he said. The airlines already have code-sharing agreements, which let them book passengers on each other's flights, and British Airways controls 9 percent of Iberia. Both airlines belong to the OneWorld Alliance. British Airways' sales volume - 10.9 billion euros ($12.6 billion) in 2002 - was more than twice that of its potential partner. But Iberia, according to El País, controls roughly 15 percent of all routes between Europe and Latin America. Mr. Eddington met in Madrid with chief executives of Iberia the day after the Air France merger made headlines, fueling speculation that the British and Spanish airlines would combine. Mr. Eddington said in the newspaper that the meeting had been planned a year in advance. http://www.nytimes.com/2003/10/06/business/worldbusiness/06AIR.html?ex=1066446908&ei=1&en=dd96b7348e131770 --------------------------------- Get Home Delivery of The New York Times Newspaper. Imagine reading The New York Times any time & anywhere you like! Leisurely catch up on events & expand your horizons. Enjoy now for 50% off Home Delivery! Click here: http://www.nytimes.com/ads/nytcirc/index.html HOW TO ADVERTISE --------------------------------- For information on advertising in e-mail newsletters or other creative advertising opportunities with The New York Times on the Web, please contact onlinesales@xxxxxxxxxxx or visit our online media kit at http://www.nytimes.com/adinfo For general information about NYTimes.com, write to help@xxxxxxxxxxxx Copyright 2003 The New York Times Company