American Airlines parent AMR and United Airlines parent UAL have agreed to settle lawsuits related to price-fixing allegations in the air cargo industry, without paying out to plaintiffs, the airlines said on Thursday.

Earlier this week, German airline Lufthansa agreed to pay USD$85 million to settle similar lawsuits, and said it had gained conditional immunity from antitrust investigators, which are investigating whether airlines fixed the price of air freight shipments to boost profits.

"We settled a large number (of suits) ... without paying any money," American Airlines spokesman Tim Wagner said. There are still some suits that the carrier has yet to settle, he added.

"We are pleased to have reached an agreement with a majority of plaintiffs that will see us dismissed from the civil litigation, pending court approval," said United Airlines spokeswoman Jean Medina in an email statement on Thursday. "Our agreement does not call for any monetary payment," she added.

AMR's Wagner said the settlements release the company from litigation unless it is indicted by European or US regulators, which are currently investigating the matter.

AMR has never been told it is a target of the investigations and doesn't believe it violated antitrust regulations, Wagner said.

In return, the company will share with plaintiff attorneys information supplied to the US Department of Justice as part of its inquiry. AMR's settlements were largely agreed to in July, Wagner said.