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Russia’s antimonopoly watchdog may demand Aeroflot sell part of its airline routes

This concerns the routes Aeroflot will acquire monopoly over as a result of the merger with its main competitor, Transaero

MOSCOW, September 2. /TASS/. The Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) finds it necessary to oblige Russia’s flagship carrier Aeroflot to sell part of its airline routes - both domestic and foreign - in the next two years, head of the service Igor Artemyev told reporters.

On Tuesday, it was announced that Aeroflot would buy 75% in Transaero air carrier.

"We really should give our consent to this transaction, since about 50% of the market is in the hands of Aeroflot. This is not a tragedy, although it is already a signal for us [as an antimonopoly watchdog -TASS]. We may set some structural requirements - namely we may ask Aeroflot to sell some of its routes, where it acquires a monopoly position as a result of the merger with Transaero.