Originally Posted by
FIIGMO
If this AA/USAir merger ends up dead, AA has to survive and they will make a play for a smaller yet profitable airline. I think ALK would be first and JB second..
Needless to say DAL will not sit by quietly......
That has me worried, ALK has a very dangerous lack of scope and DAL/ALK will of course tell ALPA that existing contracts for airlines such as SKYW will have to be honored (think lack of scope at ALK and the immediate future with 100 seat deliveries) in a merger.....
Not a settling future IMHO
This was one thing that had me concerned in C12K. The fact that OUR scope might be dependent on another carrier's scope. Specifically I was concerned about Alaska. While I didn't think a merger with them was of practical matter, conceptually it bothered me.
As to AMR merging with Alaska, I think Mr Anderson will make AMR pay thru the nose to do so, and I think the resultant company there would be extremely painful for the pilots. (I still think there is much pain coming when the LCC/AMR merger is approved, but that is a different theory). If they make a play for JetBlue, the resulting requirement for divestiture in JFK will virtually assure another SWA/AT scenario. JB guys get royally screwed, and there will be a free for all for a bunch of slots in JFK. I am sure SWA has the lawsuits all booted up waiting to insert the date of filing as the only thing to be done.
The only good thing about the current furball is that there might be a push to force LCC to divest some of those DCA slots. Hopefully we can convince the DOT that DAL will offer flights to someplace other than Florida and that that would be a better deal than giving them to SWA or JB.
JMHO. But this is going to get interesting in the coming weeks...