Following a resolved justice department antitrust lawsuit currently awaiting court approval, US Airways and American Airlines are on their way to becoming the world's biggest airline after also concurring to sacrifice locations at major airports throughout the United States The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.
The two airlines will now give up stations at Washington D.C.'s Reagan National Airport, in a move that will decrease the company's departures 15 percent. Stations will also be vacated at New York's La Guardia for a seven percent slash.
"We are pleased to have this lawsuit behind us and look forward to building the new American Airlines together," Doug Parker, US Airways chief executive officer told The Journal.
The two airlines will also move from two gates at Chicago, Los Angeles, Dallas, Boston, and Miami, and keep their main bases for a minimum of three years. Operations will also continue in Virginia, Michigan, Florida, Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee for a minimal five year period.
"There is much more work ahead of us but we're energized by the challenge and look forward to competing vigorously," Tom Horton chief executive at American Airlines company, AMR Corp, told The Journal.
The new arrangement stays in line with the over $1 billion a year in total annual cost, savings, and revenue improvement, originally figured out prior to the agreement.
The two sides moved the date to when the airlines, and department could end the agreement that would combine the two air travel companies.
The justice department said Aug. 13 that if the two airline companies merged, there would be an increase in fares, and fees, limit the choices consumers make when traveling by air, and create a situation where over 80 percent of domestic airline travel would be run by the top four airline companies in the United States The Journal reported.
