Originally Posted by
Fanjet
But this isn't 4 oligopolists merging into 3. The notion of US currently being an oligopic carrier is a stretch by any means. And WN is very much an equal player in this game. The DOJ likes to exclude them at every turn, like saying "3 Mega carriers plus WN". But WN sells tickets and transports people just as much as the Big 3. The number of large airports where WN is the dominant carrier, if not the majority carrier, is quite long.
I would argue that US definitely shows oligopic tendencies. The DOJ cited their CEO emailing a competitors CEO to get them to stop running a certain miles promotion.
I do agree that WN is a major player. They aren't as a direct competitor as the legacies but they all fly planes from point A to point B. But no matter what you call WN, the merger removes yet another competitor and makes it even easier to collude (directly and indirectly) on prices and fees.