"The CA is in charge" in TAP, Fernando Pinto told members of the economy innovation and public works committee. "I am once more chairman of the CA in a board reduced to three members: I, David Pedrosa [son of Humberto] and Trey Urbahn" in representation of US-Brazilian entrepreneur David Neeleman, the company's other main shareholder.

Pinto was being questioned on the request of the Left Bloc party.

Before the change, the administrative board had five members, including Humberto Pedrosa as chairman and Neeleman.

In response to a question from Social Democrat Emídio Guerreiro as to who is now in charge at TAP, Pinto said that the administrative board is "autonomous", although "many people thin that if he [David Neeleman] has an idea it must be done."

While Neeleman "has excellent ideas", he went on, they must be approved by the administrative board before they can be implemented.

"That was one thing that was made clear," he said. "I won't accept it any other way. I haven't been in air transport for 42 years only to do what people as me.

"I didn't do that with the government, so...", he said, in a reference to the fact that TAP was until recently a state-owned company.

Last week the president of Portugal's National Civil Aviation Authority (ANAC), Luís Ribeiro, said in parliament that at least until 1 June, when formal notification was made of changes to the Atlantic Gateway consortium set up last year by Pedrosa and Neeleman to take a controlling stake in TAP, effective control of TAP was in the hands of Neeleman.

TAP's administrative board was re-jigged in response to the questions raised by ANAC about who controlled the airline.

ANAC at the start of this month restarted its analysis of who has effective control of Gateway which in November too a 61% stake in TAP under the previous right-of-centre government. The Socialist government that too power in November later moved to negotiate a reduction in this stake to no more than 50%.

Ribeiro explained that ANAC is still analysing whether the situation resulting from the deal last year is in line with European Union rules which require the control of EU airlines to be in the hands of EU citizens. It has not yet analysed the accord finalised in May by the new government that reduces the private shareholder's stake to 45% - or up to 50% if TAP employees do not take up the 5% of the shares that have been set aside for them.

According to Pinto, "it makes sense to approve a reality that will not happen" - that is, the privatisation of 61% of the company.

"If the first privatisation is not assessed, the second cannot go ahead," he explained. "It's a complex process."