A merger between Emirates and Qatar Airways “will never happen”.

A tie-up between Emirates and Qatar Airways would never be permitted because of the political backlash the merger would receive from European airlines, Emirates president Tim Clark has assured.

Qatar Airways chief executive Akbar Al Baker had the idea of aligning the two Middle Eastern carriers to create a “mega-carrier” earlier in November, 7DAYS reported.

Emirates president Tim Clark said that although there had been no formal discussions, the idea of a merger would be economically positive but asserted it “will never happen”.

An Emirates and Qatar merger would have “seismic repercussions in the aero-political framework”,?Mr Clark told Aviation Week.