Probably a little beer speak but also lessons learned over time. All Legacy carrier mergers come with some down sizing. AA / USAir will be no different. The percentage, I can't honestly say, but I believe they will down size slightly more then some previous legacy mergers.

Also do not confuse down sizing with no hiring. These two things are independent. I do believe AA / USAir will down size slightly, however, they will also have to hire just like everyone else due to their large retirement numbers over the next 18 years.