Imagine the enormous sigh of relief that will come from all quarters if the new CEO of American Airlines Group Doug Parker announces the suspension of the new AA livery in favor of something better.

The problem is, American Airlines can’t really stop it.  They have Airbus aircraft coming online that *must* be painted completely as they cannot be polished metal.

So I now dub the new American Airlines’ livery “Tom’s Revenge”

Filed under: Airline Fleets by ajax
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A number of parties have filed their objections to the bankruptcy plan for American Airlines and its merger with US Airways.  Most of these objections are pro forma so that the parties don’t lose standing going forward out of bankruptcy.  It’s necessary and not an obstacle to the merger whatsoever.

Some of the objections strike me as simply vindictive (Let’s wave at USAPA, the most dysfunctional pilots union in the US and that is saying something).  A few others strike me as people fighting a battle that was lost nearly 15 years ago (Hello ex-TWA pilots).  Why spend so much money on attorneys and courts when the case law is so badly against you?

What I am most struck by is how -non-constructive several creditor parties are in bankruptcies such as this.  This is, quite literally, the best deal *anyone* is ever going to get in an airline bankruptcy.  Everyone gets their money and gets to move on with life.

The destructive acts of small groups having major temper tantrums simply amaze me at times.  At other times, they remind me of Eastern Airlines and what Charley Bryan (head of the IAM at Eastern) did to that airline.

Filed under: Mergers and Bankruptcy by ajax
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