More Competition in Milwaukee for Midwest

[FlyWolf]

Not exactly, but he put me and 400 others out of a job and if you work for MEH you'll probably be out of a job eventually too after T.H. walks off with his 10M. Enjoy your life under the thumb of a private equity outfit, they will squeeze your company for every penny and every ounce of productivity they can get out of it until there is nothing left. If you're lucky you end up on the bottom of the NWA and or NWA/DAL list. If you are unlucky they will just raid the gates/slots/pieces that they want without the employees and liquidate the rest of it. That way they get what they wanted, a buffer against a MKE LCC hub, without having to integrate a bunch of 10+ year employees and all of the hassles that go with a merger. We'll see how you feel in a few years when you're on the street and NWA/DAL/Compass/Mesaba/Comair/Skywest or whoever is flying the routes you used to fly. Maybe you'll get a preferential interview somewhere as a consolation prize. Bend over pal because bad things will be visiting you and all the good folks at MEH before too long. There's a lot of great people I know at MEH and I'm scared for them when I look at what's happening to us at Skyway before the NWA/TPG deal has even been signed. I hope I'm wrong. We all would have been way better off if AAI had bought MEH out, that was our chance to be part of a company with a future.

fam62, how do you know TPG will do that to Midwest? I was just wondering, because looking at TPG history they never done that to any company they purchased?

 

[Eagle757shark]

I'm not stuck on anything, you're the one posting all these articles and announcing it. Does Air Tran have a mental health plan?

Citation, Grow up will you! As you have probable seen by now, the DOJ has approved the TPG deal. Now it will be pure head to head competition in MKE. Best of luck to your company and the employees who work daily to earn a living.

 

[FlyWolf]

As pilots thats a risk that comes with the profession, you know if we end up in the street we just pick up the pieces and carry on, and you should do the same.

 

[Eagle757shark]

Word on the street, this was a test to get an idea on how the DoJ would look at consolidation. The DoJ having now approved the TPG/Midwest deal, now look for the Delta and Northwest merger to be announced real soon. Hold on everyone, 2008 is going to be a wild ride.

 

[IdRtherBsailing]

Is that the Batwing?

 

[fam62c]

fam62, how do you know TPG will do that to Midwest? I was just wondering, because looking at TPG history they never done that to any company they purchased?

Wolf, Like I said I hope I'm wrong. I may be wrong but I think the other airline investments by TPG were equity stakes in carriers that were in Chapter 11 so the exit plan was obvious. Where is the upside to making any additonal investment in MEH? I don't think that TPG really wanted MEH in the first place or they would have bought all of MEH by themselves. They were acting as an agent for NWA, it's the only possible scenario and NWA must have a deal to pay them off and make them whole.

I also don't believe that NWA wants anything from MEH other than to use it as anti-LCC insurance in MKE. If NWA wanted MEH they would have bought it years ago but they never even tried. They only got involved to thwart AAI and that's been accomplished for now anyway. So TPG wants out with their money and NWA wants cheap insurance in MKE.....that tells me that there is no future for MEH. Compass could do most of what MEH does with E-175's and do it cheaper and that's where I think things go in a few years. Also, don't forget that NWA/DAL wasn't on the table when they bought MEH and it will play into this if it happens.

I don't know any more than anyone else but I don't see any future for MEH on it's own after a few years. BTW, that's good advice about moving on and accepting job loss as a pitfall of the industry. Remember that because sadly, I think you will need that advice if you fly for MEH. Again, I hope I'm wrong. Best of luck to all of those left at MEH.

 

[gt1900]

Actually Fam... You may actually get it... I don't think your that far off...

 

[27 driver]

holy vodka batman, are you drinking again? imp:

I am, it is the only thing that keeps me from jumping out of my hotel window.

 

[CitationLover]

Wolf, Like I said I hope I'm wrong. I may be wrong but I think the other airline investments by TPG were equity stakes in carriers that were in Chapter 11 so the exit plan was obvious. Where is the upside to making any additonal investment in MEH? I don't think that TPG really wanted MEH in the first place or they would have bought all of MEH by themselves. They were acting as an agent for NWA, it's the only possible scenario and NWA must have a deal to pay them off and make them whole.

I also don't believe that NWA wants anything from MEH other than to use it as anti-LCC insurance in MKE. If NWA wanted MEH they would have bought it years ago but they never even tried. They only got involved to thwart AAI and that's been accomplished for now anyway. So TPG wants out with their money and NWA wants cheap insurance in MKE.....that tells me that there is no future for MEH. Compass could do most of what MEH does with E-175's and do it cheaper and that's where I think things go in a few years. Also, don't forget that NWA/DAL wasn't on the table when they bought MEH and it will play into this if it happens.

I don't know any more than anyone else but I don't see any future for MEH on it's own after a few years. BTW, that's good advice about moving on and accepting job loss as a pitfall of the industry. Remember that because sadly, I think you will need that advice if you fly for MEH. Again, I hope I'm wrong. Best of luck to all of those left at MEH.

So simply buy MEH and let it whittle or use its assets (airplanes and gates) and employees (they were planning on hiring 1/2 the amount of Midwest's pilots this year, their DTW FA reserve list is the number of our FA's)? MEH is a small speed bump in the grand scheme for NWA and integrating them. No doubt Compass is going to be used, but so will the MEH 717's and people who operate them already qualified.

But we shall see, if we're stand alone TPG better buy new airplanes......

 

[CitationLover]

Word on the street, this was a test to get an idea on how the DoJ would look at consolidation. The DoJ having now approved the TPG/Midwest deal, now look for the Delta and Northwest merger to be announced real soon. Hold on everyone, 2008 is going to be a wild ride.

so a company that is less than 10% the size of another with no international legalities, is a testcase for a merger of 2 of the largest airlines in the world with international complexities? yeah right.

perhaps a better testcase can be found.........