Southwest Airlines to buy AirTran

[rpjkw]

The Wall Street Journal reports the cost will be $1.4 billion in cash and stock to SWA. The purchase will allow SWA inroads to the Caribbean that they don't now have.

One question I have (among many) is whether SWA will operate AirTran's 717's. That's counter to SWA's business model of using only one class of jets, the 737. At one time in the 1980s SWA did use four 727s acquired from PeoplExpress ( I had the pleasure of riding the jump seat of two of them). Anyway, for fun, I'm trying to picture a 717 in SWA livery which isn't hard with all the pics of the aforementioned 727s.

SWA says the two carrier's routes overlap only 1%, mostly on the NE and Florida. TRS has flights to/from Atlanta's Hart Field that, I believe, SWA does not have but could possibly want. Lots of interesting scenarios.

Just a little nugget tossed out for discussion.

Bob

[Bjoern]

The 717s will most probably have to go after the merger, they don't quite fit into SWA's airplane portfolio.

[rpjkw]

This from an afternoon WSJ story:

Southwest executives said on Monday they plan to continue operating the 717 after the merger, adding a non-737 model to the carrier's fleet for the first time in decades. As part of its efficiency strategy, the airline has long relied on a single type of plane, which reduces pilot-training and maintenance costs.

If the merger goes through as planned, the combined airline's fleet would include 685 737s and 86 Boeing 717s, a 100-seat twin-engine jet that the company no longer produces. Most of the 737s are the more-modern 737-700s. In addition, Southwest has more than 100 new 737s on order, and AirTran has ordered 51 of the new planes.

Bob