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Antitrust: EC carries out inspections at airlines
BRUSSELS, Mar 11 (WorldACD) - The European Commission has confirmed that on Tuesday (March 11, 2008) its officials carried out unannounced inspections at the premises of a number of international airline passenger carriers.
“These airline carriers provide scheduled passenger air transport services on long-haul routes between Europe and a third country. The Commission has reason to believe that the companies concerned may have violated EC Treaty rules on restrictive business practices (Article 81),” the EC said in a statement.
The Commission officials were accompanied by their counterparts from the relevant national competition authorities.
“Surprise inspections are a preliminary step in investigations into suspected cartels. The fact that the European Commission carries out such inspections does not mean that the companies are guilty of anti-competitive behaviour; nor does it prejudge the outcome of the investigation itself. The European Commission respects the rights of defence, in particular the right of companies to be heard in antitrust proceedings,” the statement added.
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