Some of the United deal's influential supporters expressed their displeasure yesterday. Senator Arlen Specter, a Republican of Pennsylvania, where US Airways operates hubs in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, wrote a letter to James E. Goodwin, the chairman of the UAL, urging him to press ahead with the Justice Department so that it would be forced to make a final judgment on the deal.
Kevin Murphy, an airline analyst at Morgan Stanley in New York, has long argued that industry consolidation is inevitable because the airlines are simply not profitable enough to cover their investments in airplanes, terminals and other expenses.
"The market forces pushing consolidation are still there," Mr. Murphy said. "This happens because the marketplace wants it to happen. It is not happening because of egos."
http://www.nytimes.com/2001/07/03/business/03AIR.html
Merger news needs a long-term look
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/yhoo...672D9DF73E5%7D
US Air May Sell Assets After Deal Fails
http://biz.yahoo.com/rb/010703/busin...utlook_dc.html
United's Breakup With US Airways Hailed As Welcome, Overdue Move
http://biz.yahoo.com/apf/010703/unit...airways_2.html
The impending demise of the proposed merger between United Airlines and US Airways was welcomed by industry experts and politicians alike, even though the two carriers were reluctant to officially proclaim their troubled 13-month relationship over.
Airline analysts said that after being overtaken by American Airlines as the world's largest carrier, United can now devote more attention to improving service and on-time problems that haven't been fully resolved from last year.
"United saw they were going to end up with a giant mess to merge, while American was in a position to eat their lunch," said airline industry consultant Michael Boyd.
In Washington, the chairman and ranking member of the Senate Antitrust Subcommittee applauded the fact that the deal "appears to be void."
"This merger, if permitted to occur, would have resulted in less choice and higher fares for millions of American air travelers," Sens. Herb Kohl of Wisconsin and Mike DeWine of Ohio said in a joint statement.
After months of speculation that the proposed $4.3 billion acquisition was doomed to failure, United and US Airways issued a terse statement Monday saying they are in talks "regarding the possibility of terminating the proposed merger."
http://washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/art...-2001Jul3.html
AND:
Political opponents of the deal were pleased. Senators Herb Kohl (D., Wis.) and Mike DeWine (R., Ohio), chairman and ranking member, respectively, of the Senate Antitrust Subcommittee, said Monday the deal would have led to "dangerous levels of concentration" in the industry, and fewer choices and higher fares for consumers.
http://public.wsj.com/sn/y/SB994086915993350631.html
[This message has been edited by doc (edited 07-03-2001).]