It was more than a DOH land grab though. While they certainlly would have tried for that, most knew, including the RJDC architects, that they wouldn't likely get it.

The big prize was taking the runway, reaching V1 and going for it. At that point it wouldn't matter what they'd get, as they felt at that point a staple was the absolute floor, DOH the ceiling, and they would likely get something in between. IOW why agree to a staple, even if you would accept one, if you thought you could get more from an arbitrator?

I bet someone still has the PID meeting (pre-RJDC movement by the same top brass) handout laying around somewhere that has a Q&A section. I'm slightly paraphrasing (its VERY close though):

Q: What if ALPA says no.
A: ALPA can't say no.
Q: So then what will the merger look like? DOH, relative, staple, etc?
A: While no one can be certain what an arbitrator will do, typically in a merger a staple is the floor and DOH is the maximum and often they settle for something in between.

While some senior ASA/CMR guys were definately salivating and doing some mental fantasy bidding scenarios over DOH, the guys turning the wheels knew it was possible but unlikely. Their real goal was to just get to arbitration. They would have accepted a staple with protections, but they absolutely had to attempt to "go for it" first. That's what completely poisioned the well. In their arrogance and greed they drastically overplayed their hand.