Air France-KLM, 10 other airlines hit with 776 mln euro EU fine

    Foo Yun Chee

    (Adds remark from Air Canada)

    BRUSSELS, March 17 (Reuters) - Air France-KLM,

    British Airways and nine other airlines were hit with a

    776 million euro ($835.5 million) fine by EU antitrust

    regulators on Friday for taking part in an air cargo cartel more

    than a decade ago.

    The European Commission re-imposed the penalties after

    Europe's second highest court in 2015 annulled the EU

    executive's 2010 decision due to a procedural error.

    The fines were unchanged for all the airlines except for the

    amount due from Martinair - cut to 15.4 million euros ($16.53

    million)from the 29.5 million euro ($31.67 million) amount set

    in 2010.

    Air France was fined 182.9 million euros ($196.32 million),

    the highest, followed by KLM at 127.1 million ($136.43 million),

    British Airways at 104.4 million ($112.06 million), Cargolux at

    79.9 million ($85.76 million)and Singapore Airlines at

    74.8 million ($80.29 million).

    Other carriers penalised were Air Canada, Cathay

    Pacific Airways, Japan Airlines, LAN Chile

    and SAS. Lufthansa, along with subsidiary

    Swiss International Airlines, escaped a fine as it alerted the

    cartel to the EU competition authority.

    The Commission said it had fixed the procedural error cited

    by the court.

    "Working together in a cartel rather than competing to offer

    better services to customers does not fly with the Commission,"

    European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said in a

    statement.

    SAS, with a 70 million ($75.14 million) fine, and Air

    Canada, with a 21 million ($22.54 million) fine, have said they

    would appeal the new decision.

    "Air Canada will contest it vigorously," a spokeswoman for

    the airline said by email.

    The Commission in its 2010 finding said the cartel fixed air

    freight services, fuel and security surcharges between December

    1999 and February 2006.

    The decision led to a series of damages claims against the

    airlines from companies such as Germany's Deutsche Bahn,

    carmaker BMW and car supplier Bosch.

    ($1 = 0.9288 euros)

    ($1 = 0.9316 euros)

    (Reporting by Foo Yun Chee, Philip Blenkinsop; additional

    reporting by Niklas Pollard in Stockholm and Allison Lampert in

    Montreal; Editing by Robert-Jan Bartunek, Toby Davis and Chris

    Reese)