Former BA exec agrees to jail sentence in price-fixing probe
British Airways’ former commercial general manager for World Cargo faces a jail sentence after agreeing to plead guilty to price-fixing.
Keith Packer has agreed to serve eight months in jail and pay a fine of $20,000 after pleading guilty to charges as part of an investigation by the US Department of Justice into price-fixing on cargo.
According to the charges filed, Packer and his conspirators engaged in a conspiracy to fix air cargo rates charged to customers for international air shipments, including to and from the US, in violation of the Sherman Act.
He is just one of a number of airline executives who are part of the investigation.
In July, Bruce McCaffrey, Qantas’ former highest-ranking executive employed in the US, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to serve six months in jail and pay a $20,000 criminal fine.
Seven other airlines have been charged – SAS, Air France, Cathay Pacific Airways, Japan Airlines, Korean Air Lines, Martinair, and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines.
In all, the nine airlines charged paid fines totalling $1.2 billion.
A BA spokesman said today: “BA paid a fine of $200 million in August 2007 following the US Department of Justice investivation into allegations of price-fixing on cargo by a number of airlines.
“This brought to an end the company’s involvement in the investigation about cargo price fixing.
“We have said many times that the activities which led to the price fixing fines were completely unacceptable and that we condemn them unreservedly. It is highly regrettably that some staff chose to ignore our internal competition compliance policies.â€
By Bev Fearis
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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