Where people know the name, it is associated with poor quality and (in the case of places like MSP) too-high pricing. There is no reason to keep it around. Of course, DL ain't much better, but they had to choose one, so the buyer gets to choose. I understand that some had an unnatural attachment to the name/company, but trying to argue that the dissolution of the NW brand was a poor business decision is silly.

* Except Japan, where NW is (apparently) the Dokken of airlines, and HUGE!

MODERATOR NOTE: Post edited to remove Obscene or Offensive Language/Material