Northwest and Delta Merge - World's Biggest Airline

[sky's the limit]

http://edition.cnn.com/2008/BUSINESS/04 ... index.html



ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- The directors of Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines approved Monday a deal for the two companies to merge into the world's largest airline, according a statement from Delta.


The combined new airline will have a combined value of $17.7 billion, Delta says.

The Atlanta-based combined airline will have $17.7 billion enterprise value, according to the statement. Delta CEO Richard Anderson will head the merged carrier, which will retain the Delta name.

Both airlines emerged from bankruptcy protection last year.

Officials said the new airline would provide employees great job security and stability in the face of rising fuel costs and competition.

Customers also stand to benefit from the merger with competitive fairs and more flight choices, officials said.

"We said we would only enter into a consolidation transaction it is was right for all of our constituencies," Anderson said in a statement. "Delta and Northwest are a perfect fit."

Northwest CEO Doug Steenland said the combined airline "will be able to overcome the industry's boom-and-bust cycles."
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Combined, the airline and its regional partners will offer flights to nearly 400 destinations in 67 countries.

Officials say they expect to generate more than $1 billion in annual revenue through more effective use of aircraft, a comprehensive and diversified route system, reduced overhead and improved operational efficiency.



stl

[valvelifter]

Kind of sad when you consider the long history Northwest has. Wonder if Detroit or Minneapolis will survive? Memphis is also only an hour away by aircraft from Atlanta.

[Chuck Ellsworth]

How many air crew will lose their jobs?

[Howitzer]

Thus the seniorty list battle begins...

[Kelowna Pilot]

This is the Air Canada - Canadian merger all over again.

Remember what happened after that merger? Movement really started to slow.

Combined with the recession in the US, this is not good news for crews.

[KAFUFO]

This is the Air Canada - Canadian merger all over again.

Remember what happened after that merger? Movement really started to slow.

Combined with the recession in the US, this is not good news for crews

And your stuck in that sh!t hole of a country that you oh so love. HA HA

Just hope the polar Ice caps don't melt for the next 5 years , otherwise you'll be out of a job

you got your liquor licence yet (I know I'd be a the airport hotel tonight thinking of that prospect)

[sanjet]

Won't be the last to merge the way things are going.

[squawk 7600]

Northwest/Delta's loss is Emirates' gain.

[ehbuddy]

The dominos are starting to fall again for a major ECONOMIC COLLAPSE in the US.

They are pumping billions of dollars into Iraq and in turn Iraq is selling North America fuel at outlandish prices. They are enjoying the 'cash cow' both ways. When the U.S. helped liberate Kuwait back when Gulf 1 happened we all had this magical dream that Kuwait would respond in kind by providing us with cheap fuel.

Airlines are failing and this current merge prospect will result in thousands of people losing their jobs nationwide.

I hope the Canadian Government will not play possum and follow suit with the U.S.A. when the go into a recession.

Perhaps its time that Canada actually becomes an independent Nation and takes care of its own people. We have more oil than we could ever use.......when you want to build a home you have to pay unreal prices for land and we sure have ample land available.........we pay top dollar for food and we are considered the bread basket of the world..........we have lots of fresh water and power.......surrounded by 3 oceans.........taxed to freakin death.......

Thats my rant for the month.........

[Expat]

Two bankrupt companies merging, may make the biggest in the world, but sure not the best. These companies are up to their eyeballs in legacy union contracts, have old planes, cannot pay for good maintenance, etc...
They cannot face the Asian carriers, equiped with new planes, all paid for, no labor contracts, etc...
Now is supposed to be a good time for aviation, worldwide, as companies are bying new ships, investing in infrastructures, etc...

[ettw]

http://www.newglobalairline.com/

Very interesting.....

Cheers,

ETTW

[The Hammer]

Can someone explain to me how when you merge to small piles (recently bankrupt) of shit into each other, you somehow get something other than one big pile of shit???

[Alex YCV]

I think that detroit will survive without a problem, it is a nice new facility and works pretty well. If anything, this merger might give Delta better options than flying into the very crowded and very congested Atlanta area.

Hammer, the &^&% merging actually works out pretty well, but it isn't good news for staff and especially not good news for partners and commuter lines. If a delta connection and a Northwest commuter were flying out of the same airport before relatively full, they can easily be replaced by a slightly larger SINGLE aircraft from the mothership flying into a hub. I suspect that one, the other, or even both of the commuter lines might find themselves on the scrap pile.

The other issue is bankruptcy. It is actually a good position for the companies to merge from, at least for the bottom line. They are in a position to break, bend, or entirely renegotiate many of the contracts, obligations, and issues that have plagued both.

I am also thinking that there will be a significant number of aircraft retired / removed from service / sold on to Africa in the next little while, removing some capacity and allowing the airline ( and others ) to put pressure on ticket prices by higher passenger loads.

Just my opinions...

[Kelowna Pilot]

Can someone explain to me how when you merge to small piles (recently bankrupt) of @#$! into each other, you somehow get something other than one big pile of @#$!???

Well, by merging you get to create the illusion that you're doing something to combat a problem. Rather than trying to innovate and create, you can take the simple route and merge. You're going to see a lot more mergers in the near future.

By merging you get to throw all the old contracts out the door and you get to demand further concessions from your staff, maybe even steal your worker's pensions. But if you're in upper management, you don't need to worry though as you can still give yourself a big bonus. The grunt workers in the trenches like the pilots, FAs, wrenches and ordinary office people are usually the ones who get the shaft as a reward for their "loyal" service.

With merging you also get to consolidate your operations, which in theory should save the airline some money. But with stagflation a reality in the US with fuel prices going through the roof and an economy sinking fast, I personally think they're just spinning their wheels with merging.

They're going to need to take a new approach this time...

[ettw]

Is it possible that these two airlines are better suited for merger as stated in the released information due to differences in markets? I think NWA has a stronger position in international longhaul markets whereas Delta is very prominent in the domestic market. This gives you less duplication of routes that result in reduction of service and therefore aircraft/crew/maintenance requirements.

I'm no airline market analyst but this merger makes more sense than others.

Cheers,

ETTW