Mexico's government wreaks havoc on Aeromexico and Delta's relationship

To say it has been an eventful few years for the joint venture between Aeromexico and Delta Air Lines is an understatement.

Aeromexico was forced into Chapter 11 bankruptcy during the COVID pandemic and Delta reduced its stake in its Mexican partner after Aeromexico's restructuring was complete.

Then the two airlines were forced to suspend their codesharing relationship when the US downgraded Mexico's safety rating in May-2021, and an upgrade did not occur until Sep-2023.

The airlines essentially had just resumed their joint planning when the US Department of Transportation recently informed the partners of its tentative decisions to terminate the joint venture, which has been in place for nearly seven years.

The actions by the US government are the latest stemming from a tense situation with Mexican regulators, in which the US believes Mexico is violating the air transport agreement between the two countries.

Now Aeromexico and Delta are being forced to deal with commercial ramifications from the tensions - which could remain in place for the foreseeable future.