Delta Air Lines Inc. said Tuesday, June 24, it has reached an agreement with its pilots and aviators at merger partner Northwest Airlines Corp., clearing a key hurdle in the planned integration of what would be the world's largest airline.
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Atlanta-based Delta said the tentative agreement, which is subject to ratification by members of the Air Line Pilots Association, would take effect upon closure of its $2.1 billion acquisition of Northwest. The pilot groups have also agreed to a process designed to establish a single pilot seniority list by the time the deal closes.
Fears of discord between the airlines' respective pilots have, along with sky-high oil prices, derailed several potential airline combinations and almost kept Delta and Northwest on the sidelines. Delta and Northwest originally struck a tentative agreement in late January, but held off announcing the merger in hopes that their pilots could come to a side-deal handling integration.
The pilots were unable to agree to a combined seniority list at that time, but the airlines rekindled their talks in March and signed a merger agreement in April after Delta reached a deal with its pilots. - Lou Whiteman
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