Jay5150

He was talking about the JB BOD, not the other merging/acquiring airline. If they are on board, then no hostile takeover needed. Plus a company with a low stock price and a good chunk of cash on hand is a good target. You can use that cash to finance the deal.

johnso29

If it's the CEO's job to make the shareholders $$$, & the only option remaining to make $$$ is to merge, why would it be a hostile takeover? It would more likely be a mutual stock swap, a merger of mutual benefits. I'm not saying it's inevitable, but I think it's foolish to NOT recognize that it's a possibility. Especially in these times of consolidation.

Justdoinmyjob

They probably won't, or at the best, only gain a few but not all. The slots that have to be divested are going to be sold in a blind auction to carriers with little or no presence in LGA. SWA is close to, if not over the floor required to participate when you add up their slots and Airtran's.

Of course, MFA status can go a long way. Maybe we need to sic Shumer on them with stories of how SWA will kill his pet airline.

shoelu

"The FAA proposed a time-limited blind auction that would sell off the slots in bundles: one bundle of eight pairs at National and two bundles of eight at LaGuardia, with no carrier allowed to acquire both bundles at LaGuardia. Southwest supports the bundles at those sizes, but some smaller carriers do not. Southwest says the bundling is needed to ensure the acquiring carrier can provide sufficient competition. But the carrier also might see a tactical advantage: its strong cash position would make it a favorite to win the auction for one LaGuardia bundle and the sole bundle at National. Southwest also is urging the DOT to abandon the limit on the number of bundles a single carrier can acquire at LaGuardia and to get rid of the time limit on bids, which it worries would prevent it from outbidding a carrier that submits a higher offer in the final seconds.


Low-Cost Carriers Jockey For Position On National, LaGuardia Slot Auction | AVIATION WEEK

gloopy

And so is defending against one when you have a flat 4 dollar stock that is way, way, way down from its previous highs, and an extremely envious position in the slot and facility controlled NYC market...the most crucial in the world.

The few additional slots SWA may end up getting in LGA are "peanuts" and won't even come remotely close to making them a legitimate contender in NYC. Not even close. Even if they get all of them, they will barely be a cute little child dressing up like daddy at take your kid to work day. The only 2 ways for SWA to get the NYC presence they need: a massive legacy fire sale or JB. That's it.

acl65pilot

Slots are to be sold as two groups, and the same bidder cannot get both. So yes, LUV will probably get one group!

Flyby1206

It is silly, because it still is a game of who has the deepest pockets and is the biggest (LCC) dog on the block. No doubt SWA and JB will each get a block in LGA, either will get the DCA block as well.

Bad-Andy

Or SWA will get them both (eventually)... One now, and Air Tran can buy the second (SWA gets it later post merger). After all, they are technically still separate carriers.....

Sniper

I can't think of a better way to get low fares into LGA than allowing a carrier that merely brands itself a LCC (what is 'low cost' about Southwest today?) and one that has a huge presence in the NYC market already (B6, have you seen JFK?) to bid for these slots.

If they want fares to go down, just give the slots to Spirit - the #1 market from NYC is FLL, Spirit's hub. I don't think anyone debates that Spirit will undoubtably offer lower fares than anyone else.

It'll never happen, of course. Enjoy the flights to LAS, MDW, PHX, and BWI, folks (Southwest's 4 largest markets by passengers).

CPZ175

Perhaps I'm mistaken, but I believe there is a perimeter rule in effect for LGA that would prevent PHX and LAS from being non-stops.