The Justice Department has reached a preliminary agreement to settle its fight with American Airlines and US Airways over their proposed merger, according to a court document filed on Tuesday.
Under the proposal, American and US Airways would sell 104 takeoff and landing slots at Reagan National Airport in Washington, 34 slots at La Guardia Airport in New York, and various assets at five other airports, including O’Hare Airport in Chicago, Los Angeles International Airport and Boston Logan International Airport.
The settlement still needs to be approved by Federal District Court in the District of Columbia.
Shares in US Airways were halted for pending news on Tuesday morning. They had risen 3.5 percent after Bloomberg News reported that a settlement had been reached.
The preliminary settlement forestalls a trial on the Justice Department’s lawsuit scheduled for later this month.
Eric H. Holder Jr., the attorney general, had indicated on Nov. 4 that any agreement would revolve around concessions on airport takeoff and landing slots, particularly at Reagan National Airport near Washington. The two airlines control about two-thirds of the slots at that airport.
The agreement paves the way for American Airlines to exit bankruptcy and complete the merger with US Airways, which the airlines said on Tuesday that they now expected to complete by December.
In September, Judge Sean H. Lane, of the United States Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan, approved American’s exit from its two-year bankruptcy proceedings, a process during which American agreed to merge with US Airways. That move had gained the backing of creditors as well as its three main labor groups.
But Judge Lane’s ruling came with the condition that the Justice Department approve the merger. Antitrust regulators had challenged the combination in August on the ground that it would harm competition and passengers. A trial was scheduled for late November.
As part of the settlement agreement, the combined airline has agreed to maintain its hubs in Charlotte, N.C.; Kennedy Airport in New York; Los Angeles; Miami; Chicago O’Hare Airport; Philadelphia; and Phoenix for a period of three years “consistent with historical operations.”
After it competes the sale of its assets, the merged airline said it expected to operate 44 fewer daily departures from Reagan National and 12 fewer daily departures at La Guardia. American and US Airways currently have 290 departures every day from Reagan and 175 from La Guardia.
The Justice Department said the agreement would boost the presence of low-cost carriers at major airports throughout the country.
In a statement, Tom Horton, chief executive of AMR, American’s parent company, and the incoming chairman of the combined company, said: “This is an important day for our customers, our people and our financial stakeholders. This agreement allows us to take the final steps in creating the new American Airlines.”