Blessed union

19 February 2008 By Cyrus Sanati

The company s merger with Northwest looks nearly certain. Now comes the hard part: convincing US regulators, which loathe consolidation. But cajoling the Feds could be easier now that the Open Skies treaty promises more competition from European airlines.

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Delta and Northwest Airlines are reportedly close to announcing a merger that would create the largest US airline. The combined carrier is expected to be headquartered in Atlanta and would be called Delta. Richard Anderson, Delta's current chief executive, would lead the company. The two airlines would have roughly 85,000 employees.

Northwest Airlines is the fourthlargest US carrier and has hubs in Minneapolis, Memphis, and Detroit. Delta is the thirdlargest carrier in the United States with hubs in Atlanta, Cincinnati, New York, and Salt Lake City.

Article 21 of the Open Skies treaty lays out timetables and topics of discussion for the second stage negotiations between the US and EU. Among the five topics specified are foreign investment opportunities as well as further liberalization of traffic rights.

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