In the early hours of Feb. 14, 2006, all hell broke loose in the air cargo carrier industry. EU antitrust officials carried out unannounced raids on the offices of carriers including Air France-KLM, Cargolux Airlines, British Airways and SAS, searching for evidence that would prove allegations of widespread price fixing. Regulators from Asia and the U.S. soon followed with their own investigations–raising suspicions of a massive global cartel.
But regulator inquiries and potential indictments were only the start of the carriers’ worries. In the wake of the investigations, the U.S. plaintiffs’ bar filed a massive onslaught of class action lawsuits, seeking about $1 billion in recoveries on behalf of customers that overpaid for services.
