The Feds' About-Face On Airline Mergers

摘要

For years the U.S. Department of Justice has stood by as big airlines got even bigger by swallowing their competitors. The agency's antitrust lawyers didn't let concerns about reduced competition and inflated ticket prices get in the way when Delta Air Lines acquired Northwest in 2008, or when United Airlines and Continental merged in 2010, or when Southwest Airlines bought AirTran in 2011. But that forbearance has abruptly vanished as the DOJ is seeking to block the $14 billion union of American Airlines and US Airways.