British Airways (BA), for instance, has confirmed that it is talking with KLM about some sort of alliance with the Dutch carrier.

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Both British Airways (BA) and Air France, which operate the world's fleet of Concordes, have said their supersonic service will resume once the jets are authorised to fly.

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But although they have the potential to be useful marketing tools, such networks can also be a source of damaging publicity, as British Airways (BA) and Virgin Atlantic have discovered to their cost.

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We speak to airline CEOs Jean-Cyril Spinetta of Air France-KLM, British Airways' Willie Walsh BA, Ola Strand of SAS Norway, and Richard Branson, chairman of Virgin Group about the measures they're taking to weather this economic storm.

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An 18-month dispute between British Airways and its cabin crew that led to the disruption of BA flights last year seemed set to end following negotiations between unions and management.

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"This is an exciting new chapter in our history as, for the first time, we will be flying directly between continental Europe and the US, " British Airways' chief executive Willie Walsh said in a statement on the BA.com Web site.

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