Cargo consolidation
 

With FedEx and UPS posting profits close to a billion dollars a quarter, it seems logical that these companies would be interested in buying up the numerous small cargo companies.

Arrow
Atlas (merging with Polar)
Centurion
Custom Air Transport
Evergreen
Expressnet
Focus Air
Gemini
Kalitta
Kitty Hawk
Southern Air
Tradewinds

These companies all have 2-20 aircraft. Mostly MD-11's, 747's, and 727's.

Would this kind of consolidation be good for the cargo industry? Would it be good for cargo pilots? How about mergers between these small companies?
Thoughts.

Every situation is different. But ask a former Challenge Air Cargo guy how good the UPS acqusition was for him.

Ol' Fred's not gonna live through another seniority list merger. Not in this lifetime.

Why buy them when they can rent their services to handle overflow volume so cheaply?
The usual modus is to wait till they go broke and then pick up their routes.

I thought Atlas made sense for FedEx, and said so in a thread about the A380 delays. FedEx mgt didn't consult with me and went out and bought B-777's instead. :eek: As for the rest, I don't see what they bring to the show, for FedEx or UPS. Airplanes, pilots?? All available with less hassle and probably cheaper. ;)

Don,

I just knew it would happen eventually. It's hard to believe, and I've gotta keep pinching myself, but for once, I actually agree with you (not about the Atlas purchase, but for the rest of your response.) I'm making an appointment with a psychologist, first thing in the morning.

I agree that none of these airlines have anything that FedEx (or UPS for that matter) needs. Routes? Nah, we've already got the vast majority of the ones we want. Pilots? Nah, We'd just have to retrain them to fly the jets like our standards department wants them flown. It's easier to train new guys than to untrain already trained guys, then retrain them. Airplanes? It seems illogical to buy an airline just for its jets. We can probably get the jets from the desert much more cheaply, without the headache of all these new crews and other overhead. Frankly, if it weren't for the routes, the Flying Tigers buyout and merger would never have happened. There's still guys on the property who wish it hadn't. And that includes both purple guys as well as silver guys. Life is so strange, but through it all Don, your sister still is HOT!:D

Tradewinds is already wholly owned by FedEx Corp.

Oh come on.....we all know the Tiger merger was about acquiring the Tiger Pilots ;) :D The routes were secondary. :)

Why buy something you don't need? If you need to dig a ditch in your yard you either hire somebody to do it or you rent a ditch digger for a day or two. If you're going to tile a bathroom why go out and buy a $500 tile saw when you can rent one or pay someone to do it?

Fred's not gonna buy from Boeing again.(circa 1986-2005).Not in this lifetime.;)