American Airlines and US Airways agreed to relinquish two Philadelphia-London Heathrow arrival and departure slot pairs

to address European Commission concerns about their pending merger, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported. "We are pleased that as part of the approval process, the EU Commission has completed an initial market investigation and identified only one city pair that raises competitive concerns, London-Philadelphia," according to a joint airline statement in response to the report. "US Airways and American Airlines have provided commitments to the Commission that address those concerns, and we believe we are on track to receive clearance in Europe." The carriers expect the merger to close by the end of September, pending U.S. Department of Justice clearance.