A merger between two of South America’s largest airlines has been put on hold by a Chilean court over concerns that it would put a stranglehold on competition.

Chile’s LAN Airlines had announced a merger with Brazil’s TAM in August and the two hoped to complete their unification by October 2011.

However, a consumer group recently filed a complaint and an antitrust court has agreed to hear the case.

The court process could take anywhere from six months to a year, according to the consumer group which filed the complaint.

If the merger were to be approved, the resulting mega-airline would service 115 destinations in 23 countries and combine a workforce of nearly 40,000 employees.

Source: AP