Our hometown airline is under attack. Midwest Airlines, based out in Milwaukee, is fighting a hostile bid from AirTran. The unwanted suitor claims the standard “synergies” and “efficiencies” blah blah blah. Midwest garners over 50% of the traffic out of Milwaukee and AirTran want the east-west routes to complement their north-south.
If you have flown Midwest, you have some idea how devastated Milwaukeeans are about this. There is no away AirTran will provide the level of service that Midwest does now. I would go as far as saying that the cultures of the two airlines will clash, and it will be a disaster.
The bad news is that AirTran’s tender offer has attracted 57% of the outstanding shares. This does not mean it is over given a number of poison pill options Midwest has, but management is going to be hard pressed to turn this down.
From a business standpoint, it is interesting to watch locals reaction to this. It is a big deal in our community. The direct flights to major cities is a quality of life perk for the city. People love the big leather seats. People LOVE the cookies. Has AirTran considered how many people they are going to lose when they remove everything that makes Midwest special?
You can find out more about Midwest position at savethecookie.com. I encourage you to sign the online petition to show your support for keeping Midwest Airlines independent.
