Delta Air Lines and Latam Airlines Group's proposed joint venture has cleared its first major regulatory hurdle, with Brazil's competition authority approving the deal.
Brazil's Administrative Council for Economic Defense on Thursday approved the joint venture without conditions after about two months of review. The approval is subject to a 15-day appeal period, according to Delta.
Brazil's is the first regulatory authority to approve the joint venture, and approvals from Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay and the United States all still are required for it to move forward. A previous attempt of a partnership between Latam and American Airlines was scuttled after it faced a challenge from Chile's Supreme Court, but Delta executives have said they do not have the same network overlaps as American and thus do not expect a similar challenge.
As they await approval, Delta and Latam already have started codesharing on some routes as well as reciprocal lounge access and loyalty program benefits.