More merger speculation--How about something involving Frontier? RA doesn't want to merge with them, doesn't want the headache.

But he might want to acquire some of the airplanes (I assume they're leased), and someone (UAL? SWA?) would be happy for the infrastructure in DEN.

Frontier's probably worth more broken up than it is intact.

I can't imagine a merger with Jet Blue would be worthwhile, given the route divestiture in NYC it would require. The only winner there would be SWA (or whomever else can bribe their way into the slots).

What makes you think that those CA's would be put ahead of DAL pilots?

I agree with an earlier poster that the chess move is Hawaiian - It solve the GUM base question, similar fleets, and gives west coast and asia presence at the same time. Frontier - not interested - nothing of value. JB, decent NY move, but slot divestiture makes it less valuable. It might work for SWA for the slots or if we did another slot swap with USAA, they might be interested in it in the future.

As far as the wide body order being removed from the update, I had heard we were going to announce some 330s and 321s, but the deal fell apart a few days ago - like boeing sweetened the pot or something... I definitely do not have the whole story.

It is virtually unchanged in my category.

Of course, DAL would have to figure out how to run a Hawaiian airline while closing the HNL base:p Couldn't have that now, could we?

Buying Hawaiian would also put us in the #1 spot for largest airline, and probably wouldn't get much if any blowback from the DOJ.

The only way JB works for our advantage is a 3 way - Slots for SWA, JFK real estate for us and planes for usaa.

McCaskill-Bond mandates binding arbitration if a SLI isn't agreed to amicably which it certainly wouldn't be. Short of pulling a SWA with having a holding company buy JB, and the real threat of firing everyone, MB gives them some guarantee of integration based on what they can hold, w-2, future expectations, etc.

That is a real possibility. DAL could have done that with NWA however the size of the combined (even 1+1= 1.7) operation then would have required massive hiring. With a smaller outfit we could probably fund it with our current over staffing and higher ALV's and modest hiring. All you have to do is a holding company, separate operation and start shifting assets until they cry uncle or go away. MB has no provisions to protect against that.

I'll bet those bases would go seeeeeeenior. I know a 777 captain that would bid it... well maybe... if our pay ever made any sense. :D

We need to put some Weed on this!:cool:

First off......I DON'T WANT TO MERGE WITH ANYONE!! We've been there and got the tshirts.

A Hawaiian move isn't 'grand' enough IMHO. We could do that anyway without all the problems.

If we really want to control the east coast, then the logical move is JB, especially in light of the Virgin move. Yes, you would have to give some of the JB routes up but I'll bet it would be less than what you gain....1 step back, 2 steps forward.

IF (big if) AA is ever able to do anything out west with Alaska, they might have to dump the old America West structure......which we might then be in a position to move on. But, I'll go back to my "The Good, The Bad and the Ugly" shoot out analogy. Anything out west with Alaska will be a blood bath and therefore won't happen.

JB would be an ugly SLI and why RA may not to do it. Once again, he plays chess and what he really does has probably never been suggested on here.

Weed for my friends.......water for my horses:D

Ferd

GK/SWAPA invalidated McCaskill-Bond. Might as well take that out of your vocabulary.