AT was profitable with value and assets as well, but they don't call an 800lb gorilla an 800lb gorilla for nothing. JB is similar in size, stock and market cap to AT and SWA is even bigger proportionately now than they were then. AA is huge and AA+US is crushingly large.

As for the SLI, remember its only a merger if its a merger. Look at the threats SWA made to AT. They threatened not to merge, operate separately and phase out quickly if the AT pilots didn't agree. The illusion of the "federal merger law" didn't do squat for them because there was an extremely easy end run around the law; just stay outside of it and it doesn't apply. Then there's the issue of fragmentation, which always has parameters that can easilly be skirted. Look at your own language. Its usually somewhere around half in a single transaction. That's another angle that can be circumvented very, very easily even with a strong CBA. But especially with each individual pilot scrambling to be included.

Remember AA and SW like to staple anyway as a best case, and not even take pilots if possible. JB is a very, very junior pilot group. Anything even remotely close to a relative integration, even with fences, would absolutely slaughter pretty much any other pilot group in the industry resulting in one of the biggest windfalls ever seen. Do the math on 33%, 50%, 85% up the lists at JB compared to US and AA or even SW. Expect every other management and labor group to work together to do anything and everything possible, including waiving their own scope, permitted type and merger language if necessary to facilitate operating a large, super young pilot group separately to whatever extent necessary to take assets and not employees in a resonable amount of time.

Agreed with the TV part of it, but if the internet business works as planned then it will be a pretty big deal. Getting away from ground based internet signal is the next stage of in flight ammenities in my opinion (no more losing signal outside the US).

Pretty much last yr. already

SWAPA will be happy to negotiate with the B6 Collective Bargaining Agent. Sure, ALPA is a national entity, but B6 has management to look out for them.

I pronounce this "The Best Thread of the Day."

I also declare myself to be "The Tool of the Day."

eeeeeeeeyup.

http://www.viasat.com/news/jetblue-and-viasat-announce-21st-century-inflight-broadband-connectivity

Gloopy,
You are right, I apologize. B6 and it's pilot group have nothing to offer any and/or all of the Airlines that want to take them over. And again, I apologize, in any SLI involving B6, the pilots will be stapled.

Love reading this forum and all guys ranting at how badly the AirTran guys got shafted by SWA/SWAPA, but when the transaction is with B6, no problem just send them to the street or staple them, their young. Your right though that's exactly what will happen.;)

No one said B6 had nothing to offer. Actually there is a lot they offer...slots and gates at one of the most crucial and closed/limited markets on earth.

But relative/ratios are the flavor of the day and everyone knows it. Expect pilots to work with managements to do everything possible to avoid a 12 year guy sliding in with a 30 year guy or a 5 year guy getting the number next to a 20 year guy. B6 getting anywhere near a ratio would be USAir/AmericaWest on steroids.

But it's a domestic presence at JFK when the domestic prize in NYC is LGA.

JFK would be great, if it was moved to LGA. Until then, a domestic JFK operation is great for Long Island east of Queens.

It may be a Plan B for SWA, but right now Plan A is merging with FL and up sizing to 738s. For AMR or DAL, merging with B6 is a way to get rid of a competitor and then reward the multitude of other competitors with new divested slots. Frankly, it's just messy.

So I bet next round of mergers, JB is still standing by itself unless it joins with Virgin San Fransisco.

I think each merger and SLI is too unique to apply a uniform blanket process.

Those of us who watched the SWA/FL process go down had opinions on what was fair.

I'm sure B6 would love to see Congress pass a law saying DOH mergers were illegal and ratio mergers starting at the #1 position with no fences are the only option. Which works great if you merge with AMR, DAL, SWA or UCAL.

Doesn't work so great if it's SkyWest Holdings pulling an RAH/F9 and combining the SkyWest side of Skywest :rolleyes: with B6 with no fences.