DOJ Approves Midwest/Northwest/TPG Deal

[Eagle757shark]

U.S. Department of Justice Closes Investigation of Pending Acquisition of Midwest Air Group; Transaction Expected to Close January 31
Wednesday January 30, 6:18 pm ET
MILWAUKEE, Jan. 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Midwest Air Group, Inc. (Amex: MEH - News), parent company of Midwest Airlines, today said that the parties have been informed by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) that the DOJ has closed its investigation of the pending acquisition of Midwest Air Group by Midwest Air Partners, LLC, an affiliate of TPG Capital. As a result, the parties are able to close the acquisition in compliance with the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976. The acquisition is expected to close January 31, 2008.
As previously announced, the transaction was approved at a special meeting of Midwest shareholders on October 30, 2007. Completion of the acquisition is subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.
Trading of Midwest Air Group stock on the American Stock Exchange is expected to conclude as of the close of trading on January 31, 2008. Shareholders of record as of that date will be notified of the process to surrender their shares in exchange for the per-share merger consideration of $17.00 in cash, without interest, following the closing. Shareholders whose shares are held by a broker or other nominee in "street name" should contact their broker or other nominee for information about receiving the cash consideration for their shares.
Midwest Airlines features jet service throughout the United States, including Milwaukee's most daily nonstop flights and best schedule to major destinations. Catering to business travelers and discerning leisure travelers, the airline earned its reputation as "The best care in the air" by providing passengers with impeccable service and onboard amenities at competitive fares. More information is available at http://www.midwestairlines.com.
Statements about the expected timing, completion and effects of the proposed merger and all other statements in this release, other than historical facts, constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements and any such forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by reference to the following cautionary statements. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof and are based on current expectations and involve a number of assumptions, risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking statements. Midwest may not be able to complete the proposed merger on the terms described above or other acceptable terms or at all because of a number of factors, including the failure to satisfy the closing conditions. These factors, and other factors that may affect the business or financial results of Midwest, are described in the risk factors included in "Item 1A. Risk Factors" in Midwest's "Annual Report on Form 10-K" for the year ended December 31, 2006.



Source: Midwest Air Group, Inc.

 

[Eagle757shark]

Now that this deal is approved by the DOJ, look for Delta and Northwest to announce their deal any day now. Hold on everyone 2008 is about to be a wild ride.

 

[Bill Nelson]

Of course it passed. So will all of the future mergers this year. Politicians can spout off all they want, but in the end it is a necessary evil to consolidate. In 2008 you consolidate or die.

You will hear lots of trash talking fromm the politicians protecting their own turf when it comes to consolidation, but in the end they will rubber stamp everyone of them. Mark my words.

 

[clippyrip]

They have to rubber stamp the mergers. The only reason they get a say is because of anti-trust issues. With all the LCCs and other airlines out there, there is no case for anti-trust. The merger is on like Donkey Kong.

KLM, Air France, Delta and NWA...one happy family. Hopefully not a dysfunctional family....

 

[Wesb737fo]

Good luck Midwest Guy's,

I hope you guys get treated fairly. Who knows how all this merger stuff is going to wind up. It's a dog eat dog world and we're all wearing milk bone underwear.
(unless you work for SWA...then you're probably ok)

 

[71driver]

I couldn't agree more they thump there chest go back to the bar and ask for the rubber stamp it is a big song and dance, I would prefer an actual song and dance though they owe it to us!

Oh and midwest guys I hate to state the obvious but you are hosed

 

[General Lee]

So if Delta acquires NWA, I guess Delta will also own Midwest.???

Bye Bye--General Lee

 

[maxblast72]

So who loaded up on the MEH stock. You could have bought it for $14 a share back in Dec 2007. Would of brought a nice 21% return in about 8 weeks. A hell of lot better than my 401 (k) over the last 8 weeks. Oh well.

 

[PUflight]

Hey General,
Hate to break it to ya, but NWA may acquire Delta...gasp... Who made more money last year?

 

[Superpilot92]

Hey General,
Hate to break it to ya, but NWA may acquire Delta...gasp... Who made more money last year?

SSShhhh dont get the general going

 

[scarlet]

MEH has what 6-8 profitable routes..LGA, BOS, FLL, ATL,

Now Airtran comes into MKE to go into LGA BOS BWI
ATL SEA SAN LAS ,, and several FL locations..??

BUH BYE MEH...

 

[General Lee]

Hey General,
Hate to break it to ya, but NWA may acquire Delta...gasp... Who made more money last year?

Show me one analyst that states that. Every article that I have read has it the other way around. One even said Air France was looking at loaning Delta some seed money to help buy NWA. If you need any of these articles, just tell me---I will show you. But, I would like to see ones with your version of what may happen.

And, it doesn't really matter who made more money last year.

Here's an example of what I mean. Please offer your article that states Northwest would buy Delta. I would love to see anything you could provide. I am not saying it would happen this way, but these analysts know a heck of a lot more than you or I do about this possibility. Please show me.


Airline deal would still fly: Northwest sale to Delta won't stop buyout of Midwest, executive says Thursday, January 17, 2008; Posted: 04:56 AM

}Jan 17, 2008 (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - McClatchy| news | PowerRating | PR Charts -- Any sale of Northwest Airlines Corp. to Delta Air Lines Corp. would not affect the pending sale of Midwest Air Group Inc. to Northwest and a Texas investment firm, a Midwest Air executive said Wednesday.
The Oak Creek parent of Midwest Airlines still expects to complete its $451.8 million sale to TPG Capital and Northwest by Jan. 31, said Carol Skornicka, senior vice president of corporate affairs.
Northwest is in talks with Delta regarding a possible merger, House Transportation Committee Chairman James Oberstar (D-Minn.) said in remarks first reported by the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Oberstar generally does not favor airline consolidation and would likely hold hearings on any proposed merger, said his spokesman, Jim Berard.
Meanwhile, the sale of Midwest Air to TPG/Northwest is still being reviewed by U.S. Department of Justice antitrust regulators.
TPG Capital, a private equity firm based in Fort Worth, Texas, would own a 53% stake in Midwest Air. Eagan, Minn.-based Northwest would own a 47% stake but would not participate in management or control of Midwest. Northwest would have the option to eventually buy TPG's stake.
Midwest Air, through Midwest Airlines and regional carrier Midwest Connect, holds a 54.1% market share at Mitchell International Airport, according to airport data. Northwest is the No. 2 carrier at Mitchell, with a 12.6% market share, and Delta is No. 4, at 6.6%.
The No. 3 carrier at Mitchell International, with a 7.2% share, is AirTran Holdings Inc. of Orlando, Fla. AirTran in August dropped its takeover campaign for Midwest Air after being outbid by TPG/Northwest.
"We see no impact from these discussions on (Department of Justice) approval of our transaction," Skornicka said. "Keep in mind that we are not merging with Northwest at this time. If that would happen down the road, the DOJ would be required to conduct a fresh analysis that would include then-current market conditions."
A Northwest spokesman declined to comment, and a Delta spokesman couldn't be reached for comment.
Some airline industry analysts said reports of Delta's interest in buying either Northwest or UAL Corp., the Chicago-based parent of United Airlines, could affect the Midwest Air sale.
"In my opinion, everything could be up in the air if things start to move along these lines," said Ray Neidl of Calyon Securities in New York.
A Northwest sale to Delta offers greater opportunities to cut costs than a sale of United to Delta, according to an analysis conducted by Morningstar Corp., a Chicago investment research company.
But Delta executives might be concerned that Northwest's planned 47% stake in Midwest Air, along with Northwest's option to buy Midwest, would cause problems in gaining antitrust approval for Delta to buy Northwest, said Marisa Thompson of Morningstar.
Under that scenario, a combined Delta/Northwest/Midwest could eventually control over 73% of the market at Mitchell International. Delta executives would likely seek assurances from Northwest that such a scenario wouldn't hurt the chances of a Delta/Northwest merger gaining antitrust approval, Thompson said.




Bye Bye--General Lee

 

[Superpilot92]

Show me one analyst that states that. Every article that I have read has it the other way around. One even said Air France was looking at loaning Delta some seed money to help buy NWA. If you need any of these articles, just tell me---I will show you. But, I would like to see ones with your version of what may happen.

And, it doesn't really matter who made more money last year.

Here's an example of what I mean. Please offer your article that states Northwest would buy Delta. I would love to see anything you could provide. I am not saying it would happen this way, but these analysts know a heck of a lot more than you or I do about this possibility. Please show me.


Airline deal would still fly: Northwest sale to Delta won't stop buyout of Midwest, executive says Thursday, January 17, 2008; Posted: 04:56 AM

}Jan 17, 2008 (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - McClatchy| news | PowerRating | PR Charts -- Any sale of Northwest Airlines Corp. to Delta Air Lines Corp. would not affect the pending sale of Midwest Air Group Inc. to Northwest and a Texas investment firm, a Midwest Air executive said Wednesday.
The Oak Creek parent of Midwest Airlines still expects to complete its $451.8 million sale to TPG Capital and Northwest by Jan. 31, said Carol Skornicka, senior vice president of corporate affairs.
Northwest is in talks with Delta regarding a possible merger, House Transportation Committee Chairman James Oberstar (D-Minn.) said in remarks first reported by the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Oberstar generally does not favor airline consolidation and would likely hold hearings on any proposed merger, said his spokesman, Jim Berard.
Meanwhile, the sale of Midwest Air to TPG/Northwest is still being reviewed by U.S. Department of Justice antitrust regulators.
TPG Capital, a private equity firm based in Fort Worth, Texas, would own a 53% stake in Midwest Air. Eagan, Minn.-based Northwest would own a 47% stake but would not participate in management or control of Midwest. Northwest would have the option to eventually buy TPG's stake.
Midwest Air, through Midwest Airlines and regional carrier Midwest Connect, holds a 54.1% market share at Mitchell International Airport, according to airport data. Northwest is the No. 2 carrier at Mitchell, with a 12.6% market share, and Delta is No. 4, at 6.6%.
The No. 3 carrier at Mitchell International, with a 7.2% share, is AirTran Holdings Inc. of Orlando, Fla. AirTran in August dropped its takeover campaign for Midwest Air after being outbid by TPG/Northwest.
"We see no impact from these discussions on (Department of Justice) approval of our transaction," Skornicka said. "Keep in mind that we are not merging with Northwest at this time. If that would happen down the road, the DOJ would be required to conduct a fresh analysis that would include then-current market conditions."
A Northwest spokesman declined to comment, and a Delta spokesman couldn't be reached for comment.
Some airline industry analysts said reports of Delta's interest in buying either Northwest or UAL Corp., the Chicago-based parent of United Airlines, could affect the Midwest Air sale.
"In my opinion, everything could be up in the air if things start to move along these lines," said Ray Neidl of Calyon Securities in New York.
A Northwest sale to Delta offers greater opportunities to cut costs than a sale of United to Delta, according to an analysis conducted by Morningstar Corp., a Chicago investment research company.
But Delta executives might be concerned that Northwest's planned 47% stake in Midwest Air, along with Northwest's option to buy Midwest, would cause problems in gaining antitrust approval for Delta to buy Northwest, said Marisa Thompson of Morningstar.
Under that scenario, a combined Delta/Northwest/Midwest could eventually control over 73% of the market at Mitchell International. Delta executives would likely seek assurances from Northwest that such a scenario wouldn't hurt the chances of a Delta/Northwest merger gaining antitrust approval, Thompson said.




Bye Bye--General Lee

You pick and chose words all you want but you keep saying "Acquire" when everyone knows IF it happens it will be a stock swap Merger. I have highlighted in red other words of interest since you didnt Underline those

 

[737 Pylt]

<SIGH!> Tomato, tomaato!
Who gives a frog's fat ass who bought/merged/slept with.....In the end it would be by ALPA merger policy!
Stop splitting hairs over stuff you guys have ZERO control over. Superpilot 92, correct me if I'm wrong, but are you not even hired yet???

737

 

[General Lee]

You pick and chose words all you want but you keep saying "Acquire" when everyone knows IF it happens it will be a stock swap Merger. I have highlighted in red other words of interest since you didnt Underline those

It's in the title of the article. Give me a break. You haven't even started there yet, sheesh. Did you say you will likely get the FE slot on a 742? Wow, that ought to be interesting.

Bye Bye--General Lee