Both Delta Air Lines and US Airways
are rumored to be exploring some sort of consolidation with American Airlines. During separate fourth-quarter earnings calls with analysts and media Wednesday, Delta management batted away all questions on the topic, while US Airways CEO Doug Parker confirmed that, yes, the carrier is exploring its options, that nothing is imminent and, although US Airways has long been a proponent of M&A, that the carrier does not "need" to participate in what may or may not be the next round of industry consolidation.
We dashed off a quick tweet about this hot topic last night, which I thought conveyed my sentiments regarding this hoopla surrounding a potential "deal" for
AMR, parent of
American Airlines. I made the point that I questioned any "offer" that was addressed to one "Gerald" Arpey. Not "Gerard" Arpey.
In a nutshell -- I was implying that you should go back to whatever you were doing before you got sidetracked with news of this nonsense.
At this week's inaugural edition of The Beat
Live in Cleveland, attendees got a healthy (or, at least, large) dose of politics as
The Beat's Jay Campbell presented results of
The Beat's Election '08 Reader Poll and consultant Tom Wilkinson took the audience through a rundown of the two presidential candidates' positions on issues related to business travel. Linked below, the presentations built upon
The Beat's recent three-part series on
McCain, Obama And The Issues.
"The News," presented by Jay Campbell (PDF)
"The Views," presented by Tom Wilkinson (PDF)
