U.S. Department of 

Transportation 

Assistant Secretary 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE 

Washington, DC 20590 

Office of the Secretary 

of Transportation MAY 01 20\3 

Mr. James H. Ferguson 

Corporate Vice President ·::· .. :,m,l 0 \,: -• 

Customer and Business Transactions 

FedEx Corporation 

942 S. Shady Grove Road, Suite 239 

Memphis, TN 38120 

Dear Mr. Ferguson: 

. \ 

Thank you for your letter of January 31,2013, supporting the application for antitrust immWlity 

filed by Air France, Alitalia, Delta, KLM, and Virgin Atlantic. The Secretary has asked that I 

respond to your letter directly. 

As you may know, Delta and Virgin Atlantic are seeking antitrust immunity primarily to laWlch 

a joint venture covering all of their flights between North America and the United Kingdom. 

Delta and Virgin Atlantic are proposing to cooperate with Air France, Alitalia, and KLM as part 

of the new joint venture. 

""' ; .i: 

The application is administered in a public docket, which ensures that interested parties have the 

opportWlity to comment. The U.S. Department ofTransportation (DOT) will evaluate the 

application according to rigorous statutory standards. Decisions on the application are made in 

consultation with the U.S. Department of Justice's Antitrust Division following a thorough 

analysis of competitive factors. As this matter is now pending, I hope you understand that I 

cannot comment on the merits of the application. I can assure you, however, that DOT will give 

full and fair consideration to the application as well as to any comments filed in the docket. 

As is our normal practice, I am placing a copy of your letter and this response in Docket 

DOT-OST-2013-0068 as a contact outside the record in this matter. I appreciate your interest in 

this proceeding. 

Sincerely yours, r·'\ ,~/t~Lt{---.?/ Susan L. Kurland 

Assistant Secretary for 

Aviation and International Affairs 
James H. Ferguson 

Ccn::oune \!fee PlUStde'1t 

Cusl.OnH)f & Busmoss 1ransacHons 

Corporation 

VIA FEDEX ENVELOPE 

January 31,2013 

The [·Jonorable Ray LaHood 

Secretary 

United States Department of Transportation 

!200 New Jersey Avenue, SE 

Washington, DC 20590 

Re: Delta Air Lines and Virgin Atlantic 

Dear Secretary LaHood: 

Soulh Shady Grove Road 

Stnte 239 

W1ernpfHs, TN 

Tt!lenhor'lt:t 901 818:7?03 

Fa' 90t81S. 7198 

;hh::tquson.1@iedex corn. 

Fed Ex Corporation is located in Memphis, Tennessee. We arc writing in support of the 

application by Delta Air Lines and Virgin Atlantic for antitrust immunity for the two carriers to 

Corm a joint venture for North America- U.K. service. 

London is the most important transatlantic destination for U.S. passengers, and London is the 

most important international business route for our company. The proposed joint venture will 

allow Delta and Virgin Atlantic to offer a more comprehensive and competitive alternative 

vvhich will benefit business travelers who desire higher service levels and schedule flexibility. 

The Delta- Virgin Atlantic partnership will allow both carriers to ol1er a greatly expanded 

network at London's lleathrow airport which is the preferred airport for business travelers, The 

joint venture also will benefit our company by providing access to a broader network, improved 

connectivity and convenient booking options. 

For these reasons, we urge you to approve the application for antitrust immunity between Delta 

and Virgin Atlantic. ·rhe new joint venture will be a great benefit to our company, and will be a 

positive development in providing improved service and competitive alternatives in the London 

t rave I market. 

Sincerely. 

FEDEX CORPORATION 
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Pagt: l or l lipments Only 

. . Ship Date: 31JAN13 From (901)818-7737 OngtniD:NQAA ~" ActWgt tOLB 

~fir~::, SHIP TO: (901) 81S-7203 RD 

---- BILL SENDER 

~~, =l~~~~il~~il~''l''''''lllllm~lllllllll~m~~~~~~ R ,e.,, '" ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Honorab I e .R ay L H d a 00 lnvotce# PO# 

U.S. Dept. of Transportation Dept# 

1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE 

WASHINGTON, DC 20590 

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