easyJet exploring code-sharing agreement with Air France-KLM in Amsterdam, Paris

After accepting a €6.7 billion takeover offer from Apollo, Italian airline easyJet is considering a code-sharing or interline agreement with Air France-KLM, specifically at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam and Charles de Gaulle in Paris, sources told Italian newspaper Corriere Della Sera.

EasyJet is in the top three largest airlines operating at Schiphol, along with KLM and its subsidiary Transavia. A commercial agreement would have the top three airlines working together. The agreement could significantly disrupt the balance of power in European skies. Smaller European carriers are scrambling to figure out how to fit into EasyJet’s new strategy, the sources said.

Earlier this week, EasyJet accepted a takeover bid from the American private equity firm Apollo. The deal is expected to get the green light somewhere early next year. Apollo has said it would prioritize exploring “interlining and codeshare opportunities” with other airlines.

Code-sharing is an arrangement between two or more airlines in which one of them operates a flight, and the others sell tickets for that same flight using their own code and flight number. An interline agreement has a single integrated ticket issued for a journey that includes connections operated by different carriers.

Corriere Della Sera reached out to EasyJet and Apollo, and both declined to comment. An Air France-KLM spokesperson said that the group “does not comment on press rumors,” adding that CEO Ben Smith said with the second-quarter results that the group’s priority remains focused on increasing its stake to a majority in SAS and acquiring a 49.9 percent stake in the Portuguese airline TAP.