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F.O.A.D.

On 8/13/13 9:28 PM, wrote:
On Tue, 13 Aug 2013 17:27:05 -0400, "F.O.A.D." wrote:

American Airlines and US Airways vowed Tuesday to fight the Justice
Department lawsuit that seeks to block their planned merger because of
concerns that travelers would pay hundreds of millions more for fares
and fees.

Investors dumped both stocks after the lawsuit was announced Tuesday
morning. US Airways shares were down $2.46, or 13%, for the day, and
American was down $2.64, or 45%.

The airlines had anticipated merging within months to create the world's
largest airline to better compete against United and Delta airlines. But
the lawsuit that argues travelers would face hundreds of millions of
dollars in higher fares and fees will at least hinder and could block
those plans.

"While shareholders might benefit, creditors might benefit from
consolidation, the fact of the matter is, consumers will get the shaft,"
Bill Baer, assistant attorney general for the antitrust division, told
reporters in a conference call. "The right option here is a full-stop
injunction."

The department argued that the competition -- and lower prices -- would
be lost at more than 1,000 pairs of cities where the airlines compete
with connecting flights.

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Airline service is bad enough already, and further consolidation will
only make it worse.

Get off the extra money and fly first class. They still treat you nice
there.
Expedited TSA screening, boarding, quicker luggage (3 for free up to
75 pounds each), free drinks and food, bigger seats and they usually
know your name.

Flying first class isn't going to help if there are significant cuts in
the number of flights out of many airports, and airline service will
only deteriorate further if flight prices and fees go up a lot more,
because even more passengers will stay off the planes, causing more
cutbacks in service and higher fees.

We used to fly up to NYC several times a year for business and for
pleasure. Now, when we go, we take the train and when we go to the New
Haven area, we either take the train or drive.

The airlines have turned flying into misery, and I'm not referring to
the TSA antics, which usually only take a couple of minutes, even at
busy airports like National. Oh, and the food in first class? It's not
very good on US-flagged airlines.