Alaska Airlines Settles Consumer Lawsuit Against Virgin America Merger

Alaska Airlines said late Wednesday it has agreed to settle a lawsuit brought by consumers opposing its $2.6 billion merger with Virgin America Inc. . Terms are confidential, the airline said. The lawsuit was a barrier to the merger, which won antitrust approval on Tuesday, under some conditions. "We look forward to closing the transaction in the very near future," the airline said. Alaska Airlines is a subsidiary of Alaska Air Group . Shares of Virgin America rose less than 0.1% after hours, and shares of Alaska Air fell 0.7%. The stocks rose 0.3% and 3.4%, respectively, in the regular trading session.