Halo117

Some news outlets are discussing this. Surprised it hasn't been mentioned as news of the day.

http://travel.usatoday.com/flights/p...erger/115108/1

The mention awhile back from someone on A.net could be correct.

Sounds good to me as they get new destinations with personnel already set up, the 737-800 and international certificates.

JerryFF

Sun Country is not in good financial shape, and I personally do not see that their network fits into the latest expansion strategy of WN. Also, almost all their routes originate in MSP, and unless WN is planning to make MSP a mini-hub, I don't see how WN's existing network would feed additional traffic into the Sun Country route system.

formeraa

WN has certainly announced that it intends to fly internationally. Sun Country already flies to some of those destinations. WN has also announced that it is looking at the 737-800's and Sun Country has those. I don't know if Sun Country has ETOPS-certified planes but that might be part of the equation as well.

If the price is right, WN has bought other airlines in the past. Of course, the article is PURE speculation buy a single "airline industry analyst", who often know NOTHING about the airline industry.

alggag

I believe that SY's aircraft are leased. With that in mind, what exactly would WN gain in buying them out?

SKIEL

Sun Country is a great airline... But as the guy stated in the article it is just his opinion...

gsupstate

I could definitely see this happening, as the a/c are compatible, and WN could buy the company for a song (relatively), then just use route authorities and equipment as it sees fit... And, I don't think an MSP connection point would be out of the question!

dickerso

I don't think the analyst even predicts it; merely suggests it as if Gary Kelly was spending his day idly flipping through the routers website looking for ideas about how to run an airline.

Beckles

News of the day? This rumor was discussed and for the most part dismissed in this thread last year.

Halo117

The only person who dimissed this rumor was you. Coupled with the announcement that WN is looking for 738s, wants international destinations and how SY will be emerging from bankruptcy(like frontier was when WN made a run at them) this rumor has more solid data supporting it than when it first conjured up by a FTer.

I find it hard to believe that a major publication annoucing a rumor (even based on an opinion) does not qualify as news in your book, but if someone on FT says it(with no evidence)....it must be true and no longer news.

Fine I'll say it so when(or IF the day comes) you can point to this thread and say old news. "WN is going to acquire AA" . So dismiss my rumor and move on.

Minneapolis

I, for one, welcome our new Texan overlords.

JerryFF

I guess my point was this - Sun Country fills a very specific niche that is quite different than most of WN's route system. WN would either have to run the Sun Country route system as a semi-independent subsidiary or dismantle the Sun Country route system, which would seem to defeat at least half the purpose of purchase.

The only other true acquisition of WN was Morris Air, which operated a route system that fulfilled a similar niche to WN, used similar aircraft, and could easily be folded into the WN route system.

InkUnderNails

Sun Country Airlines is out of MSP?

:

I find that really funny.

An airline named by where they try to get away to rather than where they are.

Kind of like if you had named Southwest "East Coast/West Coast and A Bunch of Small Cities in Between"

lougord99

Northwest Orient Airlines

Beckles

The speculation was 'news' a year ago when it was discussed here. AP picking up the speculation of a single analyst, speculation that was covered here a year ago, is not 'news of the day', it's 'old news'.

There is no 'solid data' behind this rumor, it is purely speculation. The analyst who published this idea has absolutely nothing to lose and everything to gain by doing so, I hardly blame him for doing it, but it doesn't change the fact it is just speculation with no real 'solid data'.

There is no compelling reason I see that WN would have any interest in going through the effort and expense of buying a small airline like SY when they could just go out and hire their own employees and get the planes themselves. Sun Country does not own its aircraft, they lease them, and I can pretty much guarantee you that WN buying SY to take over their leases would in no way be less expensive than WN just going out and leasing the aircraft themselves. WN certainly doesn't need to acquire SY for their people, WN can choose and hire their own. If an airline the size of SY can figure out international and ETOPS operations, it would be a trivial matter for an airline with the resources of WN to figure out.

tonei

And like Frontier, WN buying Sun Country would mean a seasonal slot at ANC... ^