The CEO of American Airlines stated Monday that his airlinecompany required a collaboration with JetBlue duetothefactthat Delta Air Lines had bulked up through a merger faster than American, had more launch and landing rights at New York airports, and less unionized employees.
Robert Isom likewise yielded that Delta has “run a great, dependable airlinecompany” and delightsin some expense benefits over American.
The Justice Department and 6 states are takinglegalactionagainst American and JetBlue in federal court over their local collaboration in the Northeast, which federalgovernment attorneys call a de facto merger. Isom protected the plan, which hasactually been in impact for well over a year, as JetBlue CEO Robin Hayes did last week throughout a trial in federal court in Boston.
Hayes, nevertheless, when had misgivings about the offer — called the Northeast alliance, or NEA — duetothefactthat of American’s size benefit over JetBlue.
“I think NEA is dead as Robin isn’t encouraging,” previous JetBlue executive Scott Laurence texted a specialist in January2021
Laurence —