A former executive in British Airways’ cargo business has agreed to plead guilty to price-fixing in the US and will serve eight months in jail and pay a fine of $20,000, the US government said on Tuesday night.

Keith Packer, the former British Airways UK and Ireland corporate cargo sales manager, pleaded guilty to conspiring to fix cargo rates for air shipments to and from the US, the Justice Department said.

Mr Packer is the first foreign national and third individual charged as part of an ongoing investigation into price fixing by the Department of Justice that has snared nine leading international air companies.

Air France, British Airways, Cathay Pacific Airways, Japan Airlines, Korean Air Lines, Martinair, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Scandinavian group SAS and Australia’s Qantas have pleaded guilty and agreed to pay fines of $1.2 billion collectively.

“The cost of shipping products in and out of the United States is a critical component of our economy and a price that every American business and consumer bears,” explained US anti-trust official Scott Hammond.

Mr Packer was charged with colluding with competitors to fix the prices of air cargo and then monitoring and enforcing adherence to the agreed-upon prices. His plea must be approved by a court.

In August 2007, British Airways pleaded guilty and was sentenced to pay a $300-million fine for conspiring to fix cargo rates for international air shipments and conspiring to fix passenger fuel surcharges for long-haul flights.

Several senior BA executives resigned from the company after the price-fixing deal became public.

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