Cash-strapped Japan Airlines could receive a capital injection worth hundreds of millions of dollars from US carrier Delta Air Lines under a business tie-up.
JAL, Asia's biggest carrier, has entered 'full-scale' talks over capital aid of 'tens of billions of yen' from Delta, public broadcaster NHK reported.
Delta may become the biggest shareholder of JAL in the process, the report added.
The Japanese carrier is also seeking to jointly operate international flights with Delta to boost its competitiveness, NHK said.
A JAL spokesman said the group was considering tie-ups but no decision had been made.
'There is nothing definite at the moment. We're conducting wide-ranging studies including those on tie-ups with other airline companies. We have been thinking about which tie-up could be the best,' he told AFP.
JAL has secured loans from state-backed lenders and is due to present a management improvement plan to the government later this month.
The Japanese airline is slashing its flight services as it braces for a second straight year in the red, hit by the global economic downturn and swine flu fears.
JAL lost more than one billion dollars in the second quarter. It has announced more than 11,000 job cuts since 2005.