British Airways has denied claims that it is set to unveil a transatlantic alliance with American Airlines and Iberia Airlines.

A report in The Guardian said a deal would be announced at the company’s annual meeting on July 15.

BA and American last mooted an alliance in 2001. On that occasion, US regulators suggested BA would have to give up more than 200 slots at Heathrow, a prospect that prompted BA to walk away from a deal.

The Guardian said that BA is expected to go to US transportation secretary Mary Peters to seek anti-trust immunity by July 18 to try to avoid a similar situation.

However, a spokesman for BA said: “We are in discussions with AA and Iberia and have been for a long time, but nothing has been decided yet. July 15 is not a date I even recognise in terms of this subject.”

An alliance would alarm competitors such as Virgin Atlantic. The Guardian suggested that Virgin has plans to establish its own alliance with BMI and Lufthansa to prevent a BA/AA/Iberia coalition from dominating transatlantic slots at Heathrow.

Paul Charles director of corporate communications at Virgin Atlantic said the proposed BA alliance would be "uncompetitive". He added: "It would create a mega monopoly that and push up pricesfor customers."