Oh that would be really really bad. I don't know if it would work at SFO though, UA doesn't have any gates to spare so I don't see CO moving over to T3 unless they can get AA out of there somehow.

I'll definitely keep my fingers crossed and voice my opinion to anyone who will listen.

I don't think that happened at DTW, MSP, and MEM with the alignment between NW and CO. Hopefully things will work out similarly within *A with UA being CO's NW and US being CO's DL.

Too many abbreviations in one post for me....ugh

But the CO/NW relationship was way looser than what we've been led to believe the CO/UA relationship will be.

Just as close as the vulture and the animal in the desert dying of thirst? :rolleyes:

Do we know if there will be a "golden share" option like with NW?

Is this rumour simular to the days of CO/HP alliance. You check in at EWR for a HP flight and all the ground personel are CO as well as your BP. Check-in at PHX for a CO flight and the personel and BP are HP.

It is certainly unlikely that CO will want to lock itself into such a situation, especially since as UA starts to die, it likely will behave like any living thing in its death throes and do all kinds of unexpected things.

The CO/NW deal was a shotgun marriage that was created to avoid a DL takeover of CO. As CO is in the driver seat, they would only acquire a "golden share" from UA. However, from what LK said about the CO/UA deal at the DO, CO is content to keep UA at arms length.

Yes. Kellner to Tilton: "By all means, drag yourself towards that lovely, big blue lake over there. Just think of the lovely drink we'll have together once we get there. I'm sorry, but I won't be able to carry you." :D

FWIW, in this environment I do not think anymore airline mergers are going to take place. This due to brewing AT concerns both here in the US and abroad.

IF things continue on their present path here is what the TATL market will look like.

AF-KL-NW-DL
UA-CO-LH
everyone else in a distant third.

I do also remember that HP handled everything for CO at LAS so it is possible that is the sort of thing UA might be contemplating. I would not expect that CO is thinking that way because I think that LK knows he best be careful about leaving himself exposed at too many strategic locations. If he does that, he will really need to scramble to get things right when UA gives up the ghost.

That is what is being suggested in many circles.

What would be wrong with it? Holding the golden share was veto power, not obligation to fund or otherwise provide operational support.

So far my day = :rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes: :rolleyes:

I almost feel like joining the fire in the thread. IIRC CO still has a lot of gates at DEN, they lease them out since it's no longer a CO hub so the idea that CO will gain DEN picking up the UA pieces is a no go idea.

While I think the EU will do the customary βitching about the tie ups I suspect they'll ultimately go through for all three....with a JV being formed between the principles and coordination and shared resources being extended to the rest of the players in the alliance. The biggest thing holding this back from happened was concerns over a regulated EU-US market and now that open-skys is here (and will eventually give way to clear-skys) I suspect we'll see the regulators adopt a more lax attitude.

And if the EU regz don't see it that way, when all the airlines start hemorrhaging cash their requests to engage in closer cooperation won't fall on deaf ears, despite whatever protests are out there. <shrug>