British Airways says 800 workers have volunteered to work for nothing for up to a month, following its request to cut costs.

[From 800 BA workers set to work unpaid]

British Airways and Qantas have given up an attempt to merge, leaving the British carrier free to pursue a tie-up with Iberia.

The Australian and British airlines failed to agree on the most basic term of the merger: how to share ownership of the proposed combined business.

Qantas’s market valuation is higher than British Airways, implying that the Australian company’s shareholders should have owned most of the merged company.

Their decision to walk away from the talks does not mean that they cannot try again later, especially since they already have a close relationship. They run a joint service between their two countries, and British Airways used to be a major shareholder in Qantas.

But they can just as easily look elsewhere for partners. British Airways is already negotiating to combine with Iberia, and Qantas has said several times that it needs to merge with a foreign airline.

The first Boeing 757-200 for British Airways’ new OpenSkies division has emerged from the paint shop equipped with Aviation Partners winglets. The airline, created to take advantage of the EU/US open skies agreement that came into effect in March, is due to begin services in June flying between New York and Paris Charles de Gaulle.

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The first Airbus A380 used for passenger service has landed at London Heathrow today.

The flight is managed by British Airways, although it is a Singapore Airlines flight. British Airways are currently preparing for their 12-double decker A380’s which should arrive from April 2012.

British Airways isn’t the only airline to put in an order for the aircraft. Virgin Atlantic are also waiting for 13 A380’s, due in 2013.

470 passengers are onboard the flight SQ308 which is due to fly into Terminal 3.

The A380 is a much quieter aircraft and is producing only a quarter of the noise of the Boeing 747-400.

British Airways and Korean Air both officially pleaded guilty to price-fixing charges yesterday in a US federal court, which levied a fine of $300 million against each.

The carriers previously had agreed to pay that amount in an accord with the Dept. of Justice as part of the ongoing investigation into antitrust violations by airlines around the world relating to illegal cooperation on setting surcharges. The probe, which is being conducted jointly with authorities in other countries, first focused on cargo but later evolved to include passenger flights as well.

The presiding judge could have levied about $150 million more in fines to each airline under sentencing guidelines. But while noting the “seriousness of these charges,” he said the carriers had been cooperative in the investigation and did not warrant the highest penalty.

While not naming additional airlines, the judge said that BA and KE provided information that could lead “to the implication of other carriers.” DOJ said in statement that its antitrust division “is actively continuing its investigation into the air transportation industry.” Qantas earlier this month set aside $40 million “to cover a potential fine that may be imposed” by DOJ.

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