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Passengers Feel The Merger Pains Between go! and Mokulele In Hawaii

There’s trouble in paradise now that go! and Mokulele Airlines have merged. Within the last couple of weeks the two airlines have shacked up in hopes of doing some damage to the market share owned by Hawaiian Airlines. The new combined airline aims at bringing low cost cutthroat interisland fares for tourists and locals looking to hop islands for different adventures or just to get to work. Well, things have been a little bumpy as the new combined service tries to work out all the kinks quickly.

The combined effort go! Mokulele reported a lot of minor delays, and most of them were related to passengers that they couldn’t talk to about schedule changes. There were a couple travelers that complained about waiting a couple hours to take-off even though they spoke with the airline regarding schedule changes. Apparently the law says until a merger is complete, you can’t share passenger information. So they only had a few days to cut and paste all those new reservations into the new systems. It didn’t help much that the combined airline now only uses go! planes, as the old Mokulele jets aren’t going to be used in the islands.

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Tags: Airline Mergers / Virgin Atlantic / American Airlines / British Airways / Richard Branson / → All Tags

Richard Branson's 'No Way BA-AA' Campaign Gets Personal

In a saga that now spans a decade, Virgin CEO Richard Branson is again ramping up his criticism of the proposed merger of American Airlines and British Airways. This time, however, it's personal.

In a statement made at The National Press Club in Washington DC, Sir Richard warned against the merger's adverse affects on employees and passengers, especially those really feeling the recession:

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Tags: Adventures of Link / Airline Mergers / → All Tags

Airline Merger Mania Returns

Paging Monty Hall: After Ryanair's announcement Monday that it wants to buy Aer Lingus, airlines around the world are looking to make some deals.

British Airways and Qantas are in talks to join forces, while Delta is cutting capacity ahead of its merger with Northwest. But that's not stopping the new mega-carrier from complaining about Continental's efforts to do a code sharing deal with United.

Still, not everyone's keen on the idea of cooperating: Emirates is denying reports that it may soon merge with Emirati rival Etihad.

Related Stories:
· British Airways, Qantas in Merger Talks [Bloomberg]
· Delta Plans "Dramatic" Cuts to Capacity [WSJ]
· Airline Alliance Switch Advances [Houston Chronicle]
· Emirates Denies It's in Merger Talks [AP, via IHT]
· Airline Mergers coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Faithful Chant]

Tags: New Routes / Delta / NWA / Airline Mergers / → All Tags

Delta Announces World Domination Plans

This is why Delta wanted to hook up with Northwest so bad: The soon-to-be supercarrier announced 15 new routes today, 12 of which aren't served by any US airlines. The focus of the planned expansions? Japan, Africa and Europe.

Delta already had direct US-Africa flights on lockdown, but with more planes on hand, it will further expand service there, to cities like Cape Town, Lagos, Luanda and Monrovia. As for Japan, the former Northwest hub at Tokyo-Narita will now be at Delta's disposal, for extra in-bound flights from Atlanta, New York and Salt Lake City.

The additional destinations and frequencies are great news if you already live in or near Delta (or NWA) hubs, but those of you on the fringes of the system might be in for trouble:

To prepare for the summer 2009 schedule, Delta in January will increase connectivity between its US hubs to improve customers’ connections to the world. Overall, Delta will offer 14.5 percent more capacity between Atlanta, Detroit, Minneapolis, Cincinnati, Salt Lake City, New York and Memphis in January 2009 compared with the year prior.

This doesn't necessarily mean Delta will be cutting service to smaller markets... But it could!

Related Stories:
· Full Details on New Flights [Official Site]
· Delta-Northwest Merger Gets Justice Department Approval [Jaunted]

[Photo: Faithful Chant]

Tags: Airline Mergers / Delta / NWA / → All Tags

Delta-Northwest Merger Gets Justice Department Approval

US regulators have approved the merger of Delta and Northwest, which means the two are one step closer to a deal. A court case that could still block the tie-up goes to trial November 5.

The Department of Justice released a statement:

The proposed merger between Delta and Northwest is likely to produce substantial and credible efficiencies that will benefit US consumers and is not likely to substantially lessen competition.

The two airlines currently compete with a number of other legacy and low cost airlines in the provision of scheduled air passenger service on the vast majority of nonstop and connecting routes where they compete with each other. In addition, the merger likely will result in efficiencies such as cost savings in airport operations, information technology, supply chain economics and fleet optimization that will benefit consumers.

Consumers are also likely to benefit from improved service made possible by combining under single ownership the complementary aspects of the airlines’ networks.

Well... We'll see about that!

Related Stories:
· DOJ Statement on the Merger [Official Site]
· Justice Approves Delta Merger [AP, via Google]

Tags: Airline Mergers / Delta / NWA / → All Tags

Adventures of Link: Delta-Northwest Deal Still Percolating

Shareholders of Delta and Northwest will vote tomorrow on whether to merge the two beleaguered carriers. One little problem though: No one has any idea exactly how a tie-up will save the two airlines $2 billion a year. Still, it looks like the vote will be "yes" all around. (Why not, right?)

There's another problem left to contend with, too: Regulatory approval from the US Department of Justice. But while Delta and Northwest wait to hear on that, they can at least toast to a small victory with the FAA, which has approved an operating certificate for the proposed combined carrier.

Related Stories:
· Delta, Northwest Merger Goes to Vote [WSJ]
· Delta, Northwest Shareholders to Vote Thursday [AJC]
· Merger Vote Hangs on "Leap of Faith" [Bloomberg]
· From August: Delta-Northwest Deal May Actually Happen [Jaunted]

Tags: Airline Mergers / Delta / NWA / → All Tags

Delta Uniforms Are So Hot for '09

Once (and if) Delta and Northwest finally wrap up that merger they've been hyping, all 22,000 flight attendants at the new super-carrier will be wearing the same, Richard Tyler-designed duds.

Northwest cabin crews are probably looking forward to the change, even though it'll mean switching up their wardrobe: The carrier originally promised new uniforms after emerging from bankruptcy last year, but they never materialized.

As for other corporate stuff, Delta is prepping a quick shift in cocktail napkins, in-flight magazines and other logo gear to wipe the word Northwest from the post-merger carrier. If all goes to plan, NWA could be but a memory as soon as next summer.

Related Stories:
· Ahead of Merger, Delta Preps New Look [WSJ]
· Airline Mergers coverage [Jaunted]

[Not a photo of the Tyler uniforms: The Atlantic]

Tags: Qantas / Airlines / Airline Mergers / V Australia / → All Tags

Money-Making Qantas Now Looking for Merger Love

Even profitable airlines are looking to merge these days! The latest to announce its intentions is Qantas, which raked in $843 million over the past year. Despite the gains, the Aussie airline suspects that fuel prices aren't about to plummet.

CEO Geoff Dixon, who's leaving his position in fewer than 100 days, says:

[Consolidation] is happening now: the Lufthansa-Swissair alliance, the KLM-Air France deal, BA in merger with Iberia, Delta and Northwest have announced talks.

And in the coming years, Australians in general and the authorities in Australia specifically are going to have to realise that, as strong as Qantas is and as big as it is, that it will have to have some form of consolidation.

One carrier we bet the Flying Kangaroo won't be talking with? V Australia, which just got government approval to fly from Sydney to South Africa.

Related Stories:
· No Airline Is an Island [The Australian]
· Qantas Reports Record Profit Despite Woes [AFP, via Google]
· Airline Mergers coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: SpacePotato]

Tags: American Airlines / British Airways / Iberia / Finnair / Royal Jordanian / Airline Mergers / Airline Analysis / Virgin Atlantic / LHR / → All Tags

Virgin Atlantic, BA Squabbling over Heathrow Slots

Now that British Airways, American Airlines and three other carriers have announced their merger-which-isn't a merger, Virgin Atlantic is making a serious stink. After all, Richard Branson's baby holds just three percent of the slots at Heathrow, while BA and its newest pals control 47 percent of the landing rights at the airport.

This is actually the third time that British has tried to link up with American, but it's the first such attempt since the latest Open Skies provision was enacted, ostensibly to improve competition in the transatlantic market. But Branson says that hasn't yet happened--and won't if a tie-up between BA and AA is approved:

Open Skies has not delivered the greater competition that was promised because Heathrow is full. BA/AA and Iberia would still be unacceptably dominant, with nearly half of all of the slots at Heathrow, leaving competitors powerless to take them on.

For his part, British Airways CEO Willie Walsh says his airline doesn't plan to give up any market share to appease regulators. The UK Times asked him if he'd consider giving up any slots, which can sell for as much as £20 million ($37 million) a pair. His response?

I won't

Related Stories:
· Willie Walsh Vows Airline Will Not Surrender Slots [UK Times]
· Airline Mergers: American, British and Iberia Finally Make a Deal [Jaunted]

Tags: American Airlines / British Airways / Iberia / Finnair / Royal Jordanian / Airline Mergers / → All Tags

Airline Mergers: American, British and Iberia Finally Make a Deal

American Airlines, British Airways, Iberia, Finnair and Royal Jordanian have formally announced their intent to merge, and they've put together a website to hype the tie-up. The spin-tastically named MoreTravelChoices.com even goes so far as to ask passengers to write to the Department of Transportation asking regulators to approve the deal.

The "joint business agreement" the five airlines have signed will have them cooperating on flights between North America and Europe. They also plan to expand their code sharing so you can earn even more increasingly worthless frequent flier miles. Though the agreement is being called a merger, all five carriers will remain legally separate and maintain their own identities--at least for now.

The deal still needs to be approved by the US government, which might be concerned not just with competition but also rules on foreign ownership of airlines. Predictably, Virgin Atlantic is opposed to the deal.

Related Stories:
· MoreTravelChoices.com [Official Site]
· Airline Mergers coverage [Jaunted]

Tags: Airline Mergers / Delta / NWA / → All Tags

Airline Mergers: Delta-Northwest Deal May Actually Happen

It's been a bit since we last heard from Delta and Northwest about their forthcoming tie-up. But today Delta announced that pilots for both airlines have agreed to a "joint contract" that will cover all 12,000 of them when the merger is completed "later this year."

According to the Associated Press, the pilots still haven't figured out a way to combine their seniority lists--which decide who flies where and how much they're paid--but will agree to binding arbitration if they can't make a deal.

Though European regulators have already approved the merger, antitrust G-men in the US still have to give it the OK, as do shareholders. That later group might be encouraged to give it a nod if they believe what one industry analyst said today: Delta could turn a profit in 2009 if oil stays at its current price of about $115 a barrel.

Related Stories:
· Delta and Northwest Pilots Approve Joint Collective Bargaining Agreement [Official Site]
· Voting Deadline Looms for Delta, NWA Agreement [AP, via Google]
· UAL, Delta May Lead Carriers to Profit [Bloomberg]
· Airline Mergers coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Drewski2112]

Tags: British Airways / Iberia / Airline Mergers / → All Tags

Is the BA-Iberia Merger a Sure Thing?

Despite our best guess, British Airways is getting hot and heavy with Iberia--though there's no word yet on shacking up with American. Most news outlets say the European duo is "holding talks," citing a news release posted on BA's website:

British Airways and Iberia are holding talks with a view to an all-share merger between the two companies. The negotiations are supported unanimously by the boards of both companies.

The British Airways and Iberia brands would be retained as part of a combined group.

It is expected that it will take several months to reach agreement on the terms of the merger and to finalise a joint business and integration plan for the combined group.

But the British Press Association says the deal is done, a pretty bold statement given how mergers tend to fall apart as talks proceed. Perhaps they know something everyone else doesn't?

Related Stories:
· BA to Merge with Spanish Airline [PA, via Google]
· BA and Iberia in Merger Talks [AP, via Google]
· Airline Mergers coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: alex-s]