{"id":1317,"date":"2026-06-07T22:07:27","date_gmt":"2026-06-07T22:07:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=1317"},"modified":"2026-06-07T22:07:27","modified_gmt":"2026-06-07T22:07:27","slug":"united-airlines-ceo-says-big-merger-unlikely-after-american-rebuff-asset-buys-possible","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=1317","title":{"rendered":"United Airlines CEO says big merger unlikely after American rebuff, asset buys possible"},"content":{"rendered":"<div><div><div><ul><li>Summary<\/li><li>Companies<\/li><\/ul><\/div><div><\/div><\/div><div>RIO DE JANEIRO, June 7 (Reuters) &#8211; United Airlines (UAL.O)<svg><\/svg><span>, opens new tab<\/span> remains open to buying \u200bairport slots, gates or other assets if higher fuel prices put weaker rivals under pressure, but it is unlikely to \u200cpursue a major consolidation deal after its failed overture to American Airlines (AAL.O)<svg><\/svg><span>, opens new tab<\/span>, Chief Executive Scott Kirby told Reuters on Sunday.<\/div><div>Kirby said in April that American declined to engage after he approached it about a merger, an idea Reuters reported he raised with U.S. President Donald Trump in February. American CEO Robert Isom rejected a tie-up as anti-competitive and \u200bbad for customers.<\/div><div>&#8220;I think consolidation is unlikely for United,&#8221; Kirby said in an interview on the sidelines of the International Air Transport \u200bAssociation&#8217;s annual meeting in Rio de Janeiro. &#8220;That doesn&#8217;t mean we won&#8217;t still be in the market to buy assets, \u2060but consolidation is a low probability.&#8221;<\/div><h2>MERGER NEEDED MANAGEMENT SUPPORT<\/h2><div>Kirby defended the rationale for a deal with American, saying he believed it would have \u200bbenefited consumers. But he said a transaction that large and unconventional could not be completed without support from American&#8217;s management.<\/div><div>The United chief said he believed \u200blabor groups, shareholders and customers would have supported the deal. But American management&#8217;s public opposition made the transaction impractical, he said. &#8220;You can&#8217;t have the management team on record publicly saying it was anti-competitive,&#8221; Kirby said.<\/div><div>Asked whether United had given up on American or could return to the idea later, Kirby repeatedly said any deal would require &#8220;a \u200bwilling partner.&#8221;<\/div><div>He also denied that United had discussed with the Trump administration giving the U.S. government a golden share as part of any merger \u200bproposal.<\/div><div>Higher fuel prices are testing airline margins and widening the divide between larger carriers with stronger brands and weaker rivals with less pricing power.<\/div><div>Kirby said United expects \u200cthat higher \u2060fares will put it on track to recover later this year the full hit it has taken from surging fuel prices, underscoring the carrier&#8217;s confidence in demand despite rising ticket prices. He said demand has stayed strong, though United expects higher fares eventually to have some impact.<\/div><h2>BRAND-LOYAL AIRLINES PULL AHEAD<\/h2><div>Several airline executives have said the fuel shock is separating stronger carriers from weaker ones. Kirby framed the divide as one between airlines with customer \u200bloyalty and those still competing largely \u200bon price.<\/div><div>He rejected criticism by Willie \u2060Walsh, head of the International Air Transport Association, that large U.S. carriers are squeezing out competition. Kirby said United and Delta Air Lines (DAL.N)<svg><\/svg><span>, opens new tab<\/span> are winning because they have invested in brands and products that travelers value.<\/div><div>&#8220;Customers \u200bcare about the technology, the service, the reliability, the product,&#8221; Kirby said. &#8220;They want a great experience. They don&#8217;t \u200bjust want a \u2060seat.&#8221; Kirby said United&#8217;s advantage is less about its balance sheet than its operating profit, which allows the airline to keep investing while some similarly sized rivals are just breaking even.<\/div><div>Asked whether JetBlue Airways (JBLU.O)<svg><\/svg><span>, opens new tab<\/span> would become more attractive to United if it entered Chapter 11, a financial restructuring process, Kirby said he thought \u2060that scenario \u200bwas unlikely, citing JetBlue&#8217;s cash and unencumbered assets.<\/div><div>He also dismissed fuel hedging as a structural \u200banswer to the industry&#8217;s exposure to volatile fuel costs, saying it is &#8220;ineffective if you lose money over time.&#8221;<\/div><div>While he acknowledged Delta&#8217;s refinery is helping it in the current environment, Kirby \u200bsaid United is not interested in following its U.S. rival by buying a refinery.<\/div><div><address><div><div><noscript>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"120\" height=\"120\" alt=\"Rajesh Kumar Singh\" class=\"wp-image-1218\" src=\"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/177cb8ebfb676746bdced873598b10ca.avif\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/noscript><\/div><div>Rajesh Kumar Singh<\/div><\/div><div><ul><li><span><div><svg><title>Email<\/title><\/svg><\/div><\/span><\/li><li><span><div><svg><title>X<\/title><\/svg><\/div><\/span><\/li><li><span><div><svg><title>Linkedin<\/title><\/svg><\/div><\/span><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/address><address><div><div><noscript>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"120\" height=\"120\" alt=\"Joe Brock\" class=\"wp-image-1225\" src=\"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/30e80da923675c49e3d9a7eb19ca7c69.avif\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/noscript><\/div><div>Joe Brock<\/div><\/div><div><ul><li><span><div><svg><title>Email<\/title><\/svg><\/div><\/span><\/li><li><span><div><svg><title>X<\/title><\/svg><\/div><\/span><\/li><li><span><div><svg><title>Linkedin<\/title><\/svg><\/div><\/span><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/address><\/div><\/div><p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=1315\">At least 21 Iraqis killed, 19 wounded in bus crash and fire near Nassiriya<\/a><\/p><p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=1314\">Zelenskiy in London for talks with Starmer, Macron and Merz<\/a><\/p><p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/reliablemovingcrews.com\/?p=1312\">Iran rejects idea of using its assets to pay damages to US allies<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>United Airlines remains open to buying \u200bairport slots, gates or other assets if higher fuel prices put weaker rivals under pressure, but it is unlikely to \u200cpursue a major consolidation deal after its failed overture to American Airlines , Chief Executive Scott Kirby told Reuters on Sunday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1316,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[13,29],"class_list":["post-1317","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-climate-change","tag-transport-fuels"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - 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