Chili, N.Y. - The US Airways and American Airlines merger will create the world’s largest airline, which is bound to impact passengers over the short and long term.
The newly formed “American Airlines” faces regulatory obstacles at first with the Department of Transportation and Justice Department among other agencies that must first sign off on the deal.
Then there is the expected transition that should not impact customers in the short term. Tickets from one airline or the other will be honored. You can expect to head to the same airline check-in counter where your ticket was issued, and you can expect the flight you booked will continue as scheduled.
Frequent flier miles or elite status rewards should still be honored by the newly formed airline.
It is possible that tickets booked months in advance will encounter some possible changes to flight schedule - if that is the case, the airline should be contacting you in advance.
The long term impact of this merger is expected to be greater, and as a result it is more unpredictable.
The merger means the number of major carriers in the U.S. will shrink from six, a decade ago, to just three once this merger is complete.
