Holly Hegeman has been incredibly gloomy about TWA for years now, yet they're still around. I do think it ticks off the professional prognosticators that TWA hasn't died yet. They're like the bumblebee of the airline business; the laws of physics (economics) say they shouldn't fly, yet there they are.

I do think, however, that the next recession and/or a fuel price spike caused by war in the mideast will force a little drama in the TWA story... a protective merger, at least... if they can't make money in the current climate, how are they supposed to get through a downturn? I know, I sound just like Holly.

Seattle has always been a really strong market for TWA. Those MDs come in here from STL full all the time. And they used to do a SEA-JFK-FRA 767 that was pretty popular with some of my (few non-UA zombie) colleagues here in SEA. Some of us West Coasters have hope that with LAX designated the next TW "focus city," they may discover the opportunity that exists for a new service oriented player here in the Left Coast Corridor.

It does seem a shame that with a tiny handful of European destinations plus TLV, Cairo and Saudi, there is nothing remotely trans-worldish about TWA anymore. It's a starving horse of a route system they've got there.