Originally Posted by
iPilot
Its just so much easier to buy the assets, drop the liabilities, and hire new people at year 1 pay.
Agreed. Mesa,
if they emerge from bankruptcy, will be a low debt, fleet optimized operator (CRJ-7 and 9's only) with a relatively senior pilot group.
In a merger, a company that merges with Mesa maybe gets a long term, low margin contract with US Airways too, but all the Mesa senior employees, as well as the headache of a merger (best case, you give gains to the employees, ala Delta/Northwest. Worst case, the employees fight and drag the company into purgatory, ala US Airways/America West).
If you let Mesa go under, you still get access to all of the assets (someone has gotta' replace the Mesa United and US Airways flying) and the optimized fleet of 7's and 9's, but you crew it with your pilot group. If you need to hire, you lower your average employee longevity.
Unless a company
really desires a long term low-margin deal with US Airways, there is little benefit to a Mesa merger on the surface. There could always be an unseen devious management/Wall Street advantage as well, but it's unlikely that a Mesa pilot (or any pilot) would benefit from this.
Originally Posted by
Blueskies21
If you're slated to be furloughed in september then why don't you just try to get other employment then or try to get a leave of absense until your furlough to allow you to get other employment now.
Agreed. Go for a Voluntary LOA. If you're getting furloughed soon, it is very likely that you will be granted a VLOA. Even if Mesa won't grant one, how valuable is being a junior FO at a shrinking regional?