Cargo Fine!!!

[Frogman1484]

Federal Court fines Air France, KLM, Martinari and Cargolux $16 million for price-fixing cartel

Agence France-Presse

February 16, 2009 04:35pm


THE Federal Court has fined four Europe-based airlines a total of $16 million for price fixing, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said.

Air France and Dutch carrier KLM were fined $6 million each after they admitted fixing fuel surcharges in the air cargo market, the ACCC said.

Martinair of the Netherlands and Luxembourg-based Cargolux International were both fined $5 million after making similar admissions.

"This matter sends a clear message to those involved in cartel behaviour- the ACCC will not stop its endeavours to identify and bring to an end illegal price-fixing conduct,'' commission chairman Graeme Samuel said.

The court also made orders restraining all four airlines from engaging in similar activities for five years.

The fines bring the total penalties levied on airlines in Australia for cartel behaviour to $41 million after Qantas was ordered to pay $20 million and British Airways $5 million last December.

[yokebearer]

A former vice president of Qantas is to go to jail for his part in a price-fixing conspiracy involving the airline.

Bruce McCaffrey was Qantas' top cargo executive in the US.

Now he's become the first person jailed in the United States over the cargo price cartel which he helped the airline run.

Mr McCaffrey pleaded guilty in the District Court in Washington DC to plotting with other officials to fix prices on international air cargo shipments between 2000 and 2006.

He was sentenced to serve eight months, and pay a fine of US$20,000.





A former British Airways (http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/britishairways) executive faces an eight-month prison sentence in the US after pleading guilty to price-fixing.
Keith Packer, a UK citizen who was a former commercial general manager for BA's cargo arm, admitted to fixing the cost of freight services to and from the US.
In a plea bargain deal with the US Department of Justice, Packer will serve eight months in a US jail, pay a $20,000 (£11,222) fine and cooperate with the ongoing investigation (http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/aug/08/britishairways.theairlineindustry).


Air France-KLM, the world’s biggest airline, and three other airlines have been sentenced to pay total fines of US $504 million for having conspired to fix prices of air cargo. The United States District Court in Washington has ordered that Air France-KLM should pay $350 million as fine, Cathay Pacific Airways Limited $60 million, Scandinavian Airlines Systems (SAS) $52 million, and Martinair $42 million.

Cathay Pacific Airways Limited (“Cathay Pacific”) has entered into a plea agreement
with the United States Department of Justice (“DOJ”) in connection with its ongoing
investigation relating to the air cargo services of a number of carriers involved in the
international air cargo industry. Under the plea agreement, Cathay Pacific has agreed
to plead guilty to a one-count violation of the United States Sherman Act relating to
its air cargo business and to pay a fine of US$60 million. This will bring to an end
the DOJ investigation of Cathay Pacific’s cargo operations.

SO BA and Qantas hang their managers out to dry - while CX, KLM , SAS and Martinair pay up and management gets to not go to jail.

[The Wraith]

But that is because Cathay Pacific has a very strong code of ethics....it must be true cos our GMA said so. We must have got the fine for good behaviour....
Sorry, I need to go throw up....:yuk: