That is one of the dumbest posts I've ever read on this forum.

Sure, if they merge you can hold something at Delta that you could not hold in ten years at NWA.

On the other hand, I probably will quit Delta if this happens.

Just curious - why?

I think you were hired recently at DAL. If you were one of the early 2007 hires then you will retire very well with a merged DAL/NWA seniority list. At first glance, newhire DAL guys will end up coming out very good in the long run with the combined list. Why would you leave a merged company that will be the biggest airline in the world if you can retire in the top 100 or so? You may take a few lumps in the next year, but with all the airframes coming to both airlines and all the international growth planned, I doubt there will be many furloughs as a result of this deal. This of course is all subject to change if the economy continues to tank and oil goes to $150bbl. That is more of a threat than a merger in my opinion.

While I agree some reduction in flying, and a reduction in a/c would occur subsequent to a merger, I don't see DAL parking all those planes...necessarily.

I'm pretty sure DAL, and all the majors are operating with pretty high pax loads. Maybe that's what your LUV comment was about? Because all the people who fly daily on NWA would have to fly on something. Are those people going to just up and say "oh well, NWA doesn't exist, so I'm going to drive." Probably not. There are also plenty of biz travelers and corporations based in DTW/CVG/MSP who will continue to use whatever int'l departures go out of their city...at pretty much whatever cost. Lots of those Fortune 500 companies have reps whose sole purpose is to lobby for rates and routes out of their hq city. Everyone I know who has Skyteam miles through NWA will follow that carrot wherever it goes, primarily b/c of all the points they have, which would most likely be honored by DAL as an alliance member (if it's NWA, not UAL). Which is another reason NWA is prob a better target than UAl from a marketing/pax loyalty perspective.

If anything, I'd think the potential increase in the post-merger company's oligarchy over flying out of the eastern midwest and southeast would give them a greater ability to pass on fuel costs to pax and better hedge their fuel costs (buy twice as much, you will get a better deal, even if it's a tiny difference). Yeah, LUV could step in and mess with that dominance, but not on international routes, and not on cities they don't fly into/out of.

Does DALs contract prevent them from trying to pull some bs post-merger such as running NWA's DC-9 routes with Compass Embraers and Mesaba 900s??? I'll bet their managment would drool at that idea. That would be something that would screw NWA pilots...would scope stand up from NWA's contract in that situation to protect that from happening???

BTW...this is all 100% hypothetical...no one even knows if anyone is merging with anyone.

To any DAL pilots out there...In your opionion what would you consider to be the "right consolidation" that you would be in support of?

Why would you say that?? If DAL MEC has the same intentions as APA did. All DAL pilots on property at date of acquisition should be OK.

Take the numbers at face value and NWA is flying fewer RSM's with a lower load factor. Their customer base has been on the move out of cities like DTW, MSP and headed South. They have HORRIBLE relations with their employees (broken Mechanic's strike, telling FA's to look for their treasure in other people's garbage), they have an old fleet of outdated equipment, some of which will get parked as soon as the US military contracts get wrapped up. It takes more than ten years to hold what a Delta new hire can hold during indoc, in some pretty miserable bases. Put that together with much lower pay rates and a B scale, 400 still on furlough, age 65, and the DC-9 gauge flying going to Compass and Mesaba .... There is nothing in Egan, MN that I'm yearning to be a part of. Despite what ALPA says, Edgar Allen Poe could not write a more macabre tale for Delta than a NWA tie up.

Delta was a first choice amongst other choices. NWA would be a distant second to SkyWest, or Republic, if I were looking for a job. Just the rumor of NWA had me updating my logs, calling my corporate contacts and manufacturer's CPO's. If Delta and NWA get together; Somebody...start inflating the rat.

United Parcel Service, or FedEx

The average DL new hire was 37 this year. Other than a couple of 26 year olds, none are going to retire in the top 100.

Refer to the other thread about NWA second year.