TAM signs alliance with American Airlines

Brazilian airline TAM, which merged with its Chilean counterpart LAN earlier this year, announced a code-sharing deal Monday with American Airlines. The agreement has yet to be approved by Brazil's Administrative Council for Economic Defense and National Civil Aviation Agency. TAM said the approval process would take 11 months. "When the accord with American Airlines is approved, we will be able to increase and diversify options for US-bound flights," TAM president Marco Antonio Bologna said in a statement. TAM customers will be able to fly to 52 US and Canadian cities from Miami, New York and Orlando through the American Airlines network once the deal gets the nod. With a 41 percent market share, TAM is Brazil's top airline. Brazil and the United States plan to drop entry visa requirements. Brazilians spend the most per capita among foreign tourists visiting the United States, according to tourism officials.