Air France-KLM

Air France and KLM are one group with two hubs. Long-haul traffic connects over Paris and Amsterdam, and short-haul European flights feed those banks, competing with Lufthansa Group, IAG's British Airways and Iberia, and low-cost carriers on the short segments.

On the North Atlantic the group markets jointly with Delta and Virgin Atlantic, so a traveler's schedule and fare on that corridor are produced inside the partnership. United with Lufthansa, and American with IAG, are the other immunized Atlantic combinations a corporate contract compares.

Schiphol and Charles de Gaulle slot holdings decide how many frequencies the group can fly at the peaks. A slot rule change at either airport moves capacity in a way a new aircraft order cannot, because the runway constraint is the airport's.

Hub slots at Schiphol and Charles de Gaulle are the barrier to matching the group's frequencies.

The transatlantic partnership with Delta and Virgin Atlantic sets capacity and fares on those routes.

Feeder flights supply the hubs and compete with low-cost carriers that do not need the same connections.

Passengers connecting through Paris or Amsterdam are on a group itinerary even if the ticket names one airline.

Corporate travel contracts that pick the Delta and Air France-KLM partnership are choosing that Atlantic system.