A federal appeals court in Washington has...

A federal appeals court in Washington has ordered the Transportation Department to award the Seattle-Tokyo air route to Continental Airlines in the latest round of a two-year battle among three of the nation’s largest airlines over the lucrative route. A little more than a month ago, the department decided to ignore an earlier appeals court decision and awarded the route to United Airlines. The U.S. Court of Appeals, in a brief decision, again ruled that the department had violated various deadlines in awarding the route and overstepped its authority in giving the route to United.