Next Big Thing in Oct- Merged Topics

[LGA Fleet Service]

If a corporate transaction proceeds US Airways will be a survivor because Doug Parker wants to run a huge airline and the current US Airways is very profitable, in fact, more profitable on a relative basis to many of its peers who are larger carrier's.

Your boy hasn't managed to combine,much less run the two airlines he has now and he wants to run a huge airline? Nah.Not happening.

 

[skd]

How about the old stand bye....A new crew base in Florida....now that would be big!!!

 

[jimntx]

AA is always available to "help out" where ever needed

US, because they have ZERO to offer the Big Boys, gets AA left overs in the UAL fire sale(Fire sale meaning whatever it takes to appease the FEDS)

If I were DP(and IF it goes down this way) , I'd be looking at Alaska Air. That would give US/HP a SEA HUB(not a bad place to make a case to the FEDS for China methinks)

AA would get a IAD/LHR......BOS/LGA/DCA shuttle, and quite possibly a lone China route from UA.

AND, if the moon and stars were alligned properly, and CO balked at it, AA "could" wind up with LAX/SYD/AUK or Even a ORD/SYD/AUK

Of course, we are ready to help. Why else would we be sitting on $6.5 billion in cash. However, I think your analysis is a little off. First off, why ever would we want IAD/LHR? The LHR landing slot, maybe. But, the actual route does nothing for us--other than prestige, and that is hard to spend at the New Airplane store. We don't have enough "feed" into IAD, and no spare a/c to expand the feed.

UAL does not have a BOS/LGA/DCA shuttle. It's all codeshare with LCC.

Lone China route? Au contraire, monsieur. If UAL is broken up, its Asian routes will create the biggest auction ever seen in the U.S. airline industry. And, AMR will be in there bidding like crazy. That I think is the real reason we are sitting on so much cash. (And the possibility that NWA might not survive. Either scenario, the reason is the same--newly available Asian routes.)

You must give up your dream of AA to the South Pacific. 🙂 Air New Zealand and Qantas have the loyalty in that market. And, if our International service these days is anything like our domestic service, we can not compete with those two airlines. I have flown both airlines, and they make most U.S. airlines look like "ammachures."

 

[donttouchthebeauty]

That I feel will be an NW/DL deal.(even if DL is the survivor, after an all employee vote, the Pilots/FA's/Ramp and AMT's will wind up unionized)(not thoughly sold on the agents/rez though)

Next comes UA/CO, and I fear that the rumor about a UAL break up is near.(NO..........That does not make me happy)(If DL is the survivor, CO is off the NW "hook"





Well NHBB I don't totally agree, If DAL and NWA hook up and CAL and UAL hook up, the size of the airlines would be the same - so it wouldn't have to be a sell off, for there is virtually no route overlap... This is AAs worst nightmare and something you definitely would not want to happen, it would definitely force hard times on AA. They are sitting on 6 billion in cash, but then again all the airlines are sitting on cash not just AA and AA has how much debt??? ALOT... Also .. I don't see UAL being sold off in pieces - i think the employees would burn it down first, also, Tilton is dumb however, I think he is already afraid for his life and would try other things first, UAL isn't desperate. Also USAIRWAYS does make more money than most, however money doesnt do jack if your employee groups are in strife with each other.. nobody wants that, they can make you or break you. Also what about the scenario of AA being split up and sold off??? Although i don't think they have anything UAL would want but DFW. Also the low cost carriers such as JBLU and AirTran will play a part in this. IT will be very interesting to say the least... You definitely are lusting over our Sydney and Melbourne routes though, you sure post alot about it.. I think it could very well be NWA and DAL and CAL and UAL --- if it is great if not, great, I wouldnt mind seeing my USAIRWAYS EAST folks again.

 

[EMBFA]

Your boy hasn't managed to combine,much less run the two airlines he has now and he wants to run a huge airline? Nah.Not happening.

Not defending him, someone should be at least RUNNING the thing, but as far as combining it?

He has succeeded in NOT combining it. This is on purpose. And in all honesty, why bother with mundane, costly things like integrating workforces and such? Or developing a brand, or fixing non-essential maintenance items, when the Next Big Thing is being negotiated and likely to happen pretty soon?

(By the way, I like the term Next Big Thing.... I shall use "NBT" to refer to future mergers involving US Airways )

As for labor strife, yeah, they are not a great selling point, but are by no means something that would stop a deal if both corporations are willing. Multibillion dollar deals are not going to be put aside due to squabbling employees. A quick browse through the last ten years will show that for the most part airline employee unions are limper than Bob Dole before the pills. Sad to say it, but it's true. They are not going to "shut down" any carrier or derail a merger that both companies want.

In regard to AA the poster who said they are the "willing to help" airline is absolutely correct. They are too big to fully absorb another major, and thier past two mergers (Reno and TWA) were pointless flops. What they want is the the Pacific network currently owned by United. They are sitting on tons of cash with that in mind. The only other serious bidder would likely be Continental. That's not to say they wouldn't be interested in say, an east coast hub like IAD or CLT. They have also always wanted the Shuttle, they were outbid for it by USAir and codeshared with the US Airways Shuttle until US Airways joined the Star Alliance, taking it's Shuttle with it. They even have or did have American Eagle operating a quasi-Shuttle that I can't imagine holds it's own against the two established ones. American was ready to play the "willing to help" role in the aborted UAUS 2000 merger- they were going to take F100s, MD80s, some 757s, have a part of the Shuttle, and codeshare rights with DCAir. That is the kind of role AA will take in the upcoming events... the players are UAL, DAL, NWA, CAL, and LCC... either two major mergers and a loser or one full-on merger and one major breaking-up.

Just the musings of a trolley dolly who reads the Business section as well as the Life/Arts/Comics.

By the way, before anyone starts crying up on here, this is all speculation, nothing personal, or 'my airline is buying your airline' showmanship. Airline employees have little to do with this stuff, in fact we're pretty much afterthoughts. Our discussion here is simply as industry enthusiasts and as unemotional as conjecture about who will win American Idol or what will happen on Days Of Our Lives.

It's certainly more interesting than most of the drivel we opine about on here.

 

[LGA Fleet Service]

We can all ruminate, but until we read it in the papers, none of us have any idea whats going on.We're all just along for the ride.Whatever happens is going to happen, and as always it will fall on us, the employees, to make the best of it.

 

[Harry Callahan]

My guess & guess only based on a couple rumors(what else)
East to UA & West to NW

 

[BuffaloJoe]

I was thinking Dougie may be "better suited" to restocking the Beer cases ay Circle K......even HE knows what types of Beer MOVE. (For Christ's sake it appears that's all He knows).

That would be to good for him. D any of us want him to have a hand on anything we eat or drink? Let's see him cleaning up toilets at bus statins.

 

[CV580ETOPS]

UAL page has thoughts on this and US is never mentioned. If the UAL page is correct , where does that leave US?

The outside looking in......

 

[Be Careful What You Wish For.]

...and as this wish list of a thread degenerates into one line wonders-does anyone have any hard information?
This should be settled for the next 3 to 4 years, until someone decides to stir the hypothetical pot again.
The next "NBT" please. (Where is Ralph when you need him?)

 

[traderjake]

Wish they could have talked Bethune into coming back to run the EAST, instead of choosing this mess... <_<

Bethune did work here and could have run the company but Ed Colodny thought Butch Schofield was a better choice.

It's a miracle we're still in business today.

 

[Be Careful What You Wish For.]

Bethune did work here and could have run the company but Ed Colodny thought Butch Schofield was a better choice.

It's a miracle we're still in business today.

It really is. The living hell that many of us have endured is Uncle Ed's Legacy.
Long live 733s cross country instead of 752s(at least)!

 

[WCT]

At CO the rumor is they are looking to get back in DEN, and make it a hub once again. Maybe United is being split?? To CO in DEN and LAX, US in IAD, NW on the SEA and SFO market, ORD to AA?? Maybe sell some of our shuttle to DL? Never know?! :unsure:

 

[flybynite]

I swear, every year a rumor starts circulating about a "big" announcement in October. And it's usually some kind of BS that doesn't really matter.

However, I will be keeping my legs crossed.
😉

 

[ussnark]

Just accountants packaging EAST for a merger. Unfortunately, we got tied into an inept, embarrassingly incompetent airline. Wish they could have talked Bethune into coming back to run the EAST, instead of choosing this mess... <_<

Not "we", kimosabe. As one of the cheerleaders for binding ourselves to incompetency, you should know you got snookered.

and, Bethune couldn't do the job. For one, he didn't have the support he needed. His "success" at CO was built on a solid foundation laid several years prior to his arrival. He basically inherited a competent structure at both Piedmont and CO. Innovation does not seem to be one of his, um, business traits.