I do not think now is the time to even bother discussing this. Maybe at some point in the future, but right now the very idea of major network carriers PERIOD is under attack, as are the carriers themselves, and your jobs.
Four pages of a p**sing match, every time... I always find it amusing how people are about thier airlines. Its like your little brother, you can make fun of them but if someone else does they're dead. Having pride in ones company is great, but people whos identity is directly linked to thier employers route networks, assets, and financial stats have always disturbed me.
That said, for those who are putting so much emphasis on names and reputations, lets take a look at history...
"They'd never let Pan Am go under."
"United will always be a domestic airline."
"Our smile just got wider."
"They'd never let TWA go under."
"Southwest could never come out East."
"United- US Airways? It's a done deal."
"Regional jets are a novelty."
"US Airways will be gone by the start of 2003."
"We will treat TWA's employees fairly."
"Low fare carriers provide unsafe, poor service, on aging aircraft."
"British Airways and USAir, a match made in heaven."
"Trump Shuttle's really gonna take off, everything he touches turns to gold."
"They can't furlough us, it's in our contract."
"PeoplExpress, what a great airline- they're flying overseas now!"
"Nobody will fly AirTan, they know its ValuJet."
"JetBlue? They'll never be successful."
Its a crazy industry where the opposite of what anyone thinks is usually what happens. Which is why I say Shuttle America is buying United Airlines, US Airways will end up an exclusively an Inter-Asia airline, and Southwest will operate a standardized fleet of Airbus 340s.