United Airways vows to fight off ‘business rivalry’ case
US-based United Airlines files complaints over trademark violation

FE Report

Private carrier United Airways is preparing to fight back the legal action taken by USA-based United Airlines Inc. for the alleged trademark violation.

The carrier, mostly owned by Bangladeshi diaspora, said Saturday it is now consulting with its lawyers to challenge the lawsuit filed by the third largest US airliner, which the Dhaka-based company likens to "business hostility".

"The legal move (by United Airlines) came just ahead of our planned UK operations. It may feel threatened by our expansion plan," United Airways spokesman Quamrul Islam said.

Mr. Islam noted that his airline obtained key national and international approvals before its operations and has been continuing as a designated carrier since mid-2007.

United Airways officials said that the American airline has launched the legal battle at a time when it looks to start flights to the United Kingdom market as part of the expansion of its international footprint.

International new agency Bloomberg reported last week that United Airlines lodged a complaint against the Bangladeshi carrier on November 2 with a US court, saying the very name of United Airways would bewilder and eventually lure away its customers.

The case was filed in U.S. District Court in Brooklyn, New York.

United Airlines, which has more than 3,300 flights a day, said United Airways' English-language web site encourages customers to book travel at an office in the Astoria section of New York City, according to the complaint.

Mr. Islam, of the United Airways, said his company is operating as a "designated airline," securing clearance from the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and International Air Transport Association (IATA).

The Geneva-based trade group also provided United with an airline code, said Mr. Islam, adding that the question of trademark violation is absolutely unacceptable.

Besides serving multiple domestic routes, United Airways is operating to India and Dubai and is planning to launch flights to Heathrow airport, Europe's busiest.

Analysts say the UK will be a potentially lucrative market for United Airways, where half a million British citizens of Bangladeshi origin live.

United Airlines told the Bangladesh carrier in 2007 to stop using its name and found out just this year about the sales office in New York, the complaint says.

But spokesman of United Airlines, Michael Trevino, declined to make any comment beyond what's in the lawsuit to queries by Bloomberg.

But Quamrul Islam said his company would not turn the other cheek and fight off the legal move by the American carrier.

"We're consulting with our lawyers. Definitely, we'll fight to protect our business interests cause. At the moment I can say up to this," he added.