Another Mega Merger

Fresh on the heels of the Delta and Northwest Airlines merger, this week we heard the announcement that United and Continental airlines will be the next to combine into one huge airline. This should be no real surprise for people following the airline industry. For years now we have heard the speculation both in this country and abroad of further consolidation primarily of the legacy air carriers. Some of the industry analysts have said that eventually only a handful of major airlines will exist. The Justice Department must eventually approve the combination and we will see and hear much more news on this subject over the next one to two years. Having recently worked in the airline segment I recall some of the rational given for merging. I understand some of the reasons – I think. Although, hard to accept. Like many other industries in the world today, aviation and non-aviation, the landscape of business continues to change. Continual mergers will likely mean continual changes to airline operations, aircraft fleets, routes, airport operations, jobs, and aircraft maintenance. I can’t help but wonder what the fall-out will be regarding jobs, both direct airline employees, and in-direct jobs associated with all of the support industries involved with airline and airport operations. The optimist might say that we are living in exciting times and with change brings opportunity. A lot of people today do not share the optimistic view. What are your thoughts regarding the continual airline mergers? Stay tuned – more to come, Ron