Britain's Competition and Markets Authority(CMA) has approved the planned merger of South Korea's Korean Air and Asiana Airlines.

The CMA announced on Wednesday that it approved the merger that day after reviewing a proposal by Korean Air to mitigate the substantial lessening of competition in passenger and cargo transport services.

The CMA assessed that undertakings submitted by Korean Air are "appropriate" remedies to concerns stemming from the current status of Korean Air and Asiana as the only two airlines flying between Seoul Incheon and London Heathrow.

Under a new framework, Korean Air will allow competitors to access the route by offering seven slots currently held by Asiana to Virgin Atlantic.

The merger remains subject to control clearance in the U.S., Japan and the EU. A Korean Air official said that the company will actively cooperate with the regulators of the three to complete the merger as soon as possible.