I may be in the minority here, but overpaying for an asset when it solves multiple needs is often a better choice than inaction. In this case, keeping the CA routes from B6 and AS ensuring their own expansion plans makes perfect sense. More often than not, the best long term investments are the ones in which you overpay--it's priced high for reason. This purchase may be an example of that adage.

However, as an individual consumer, I couldn't care less about ALK's performance. VX's appeal to me was their best in class F product from SFO to LAS, ORD and JFK. While I remain hopeful and optimistic, I don't expect AS to retain the integrity and value of VX's F product.

As to the "best" coach? Well, coach is coach, regardless. I'm not interested in a well-marketed coach class to make me feel better about paying a little more for it. I've flown coach on all the carriers and none of them make a any difference to me.