Airline Merger Integration : Take-Off Checklist

The twin impact of a loomin global recessionand the jarring terrorist attacks of September 11th will hopefully provoke a restructuring of the airline industry that is long overdue. In any other sector, consolidation would have naturally ocurred a long time ago. Now, as many carriers struggle to sustain their financial viability, there is a window of opportunity to redesing the airline business model and address historical constraints, such as the narrow interpretation of antitrust regulation, international air traffic rights, and labor relations, that have hampered combinations in this market. The outcome should be a wave of mergers that will result in a far more competitive and efficient global airline industry, with more limited number of major carriers in both the U.S. and Europe able to serve a broader set of customer needs on a more far-reaching basis.