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27 Air & Space Law. 1 (2014)

handle is hein.journals/airspaclaw27 and id is 1 raw text is: THE AIR L A AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION & SPACE W Y B R VOLUME 27, NUMBER 1, 2014 Drama at the Courthouse Door: The US Airways-American Merger By J. Parker Erkmann During the latter half of 2013, the U.S. airline industry hosted a high drama. At stake was the industry's structure as the $11 billion merger between US Airways and American Airlines hung in the balance. Some view this merger as the final step in the industry's evolution toward more consolidation whereby the top four U.S. airlines would serve 80% of the domestic scheduled passenger service market, with new American becoming the biggest airline in the world.' Others hailed the merger as enabling the combined company to compete effectively against the larger Delta and United, which had completed their respective mergers in recent years. In a move that surprised many, the U.S. Department of Justice's Antitrust Division (DOJ) filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to enjoin the proposed merger, alleging that the transac- tion would likely substantially lessen competition, and tend to create a monopoly, in violation of Section 7 of the Clayton Act.2 The states of Arizona, Florida, Penn- sylvania, Tennessee, Texas, and eventually Michigan continued on page 12 on Air and Space I F o ru m La w