One of the people close to the talks said Tuesday night that a small group of Northwest seniority list pilot negotiators want thousands of young Delta pilots to go to the bottom of the combined seniority list as part of agreeing to a deal on seniority. The person said that was a major hang-up.
That could also backfire. Delta pilots have been known to dump pensions.
If true at all, it's probably a "throw-away" demand -- designed to be traded off for something better, like a lump sum buyout. Pilot negotiators should take all the time they need in forming the list, and not yield to management pressure for a quick deal. Mistakes here would be very hard to correct.