Mayors Urge DOJ to Allow America-US Air Merger

Mayors from seven hub cities penned a joint letter to Attorney General Eric Holder asking him to settle the Justice Department's "ill-conceived lawsuit" challenging the merger between US Airways and American Airlines.

"We support the merger of American and US Airways because it is based on growth which benefits consumers and our communities," wrote mayors of Charlotte, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Chicago, Miami, Dallas and Fort Worth. "A hub airport is only as good as the route network it supports, and our cities represent hubs throughout the United States that would benefits from a broader route network. The combination of American Airlines and US Airways creates a better network than either carrier could build on its own."

They added, "Without this merger, American and US Airways will be at a permanent competitive disadvantage to Delta and United, each of which has been allowed to build superior route networks through mergers that were cleared by the Justice Department."

They also highlighted "unprecedented" union support of the merger.

"The unions at both airlines share our goal of job growth and our view that pro-competitive mergers increase jobs," the mayors wrote. "They also have a deep understanding of the airline industry's competitive landscape, aided by the participation of the American unions in the Unsecured Creditors Committee as part of American's bankruptcy. Now they have joined together with the companies to support the new American Airlines. This is unprecedented. Such a constructive approach between employees and management should be applauded by the Administration, not challenged.

The mayors' letter comes on the heels of 68 Democratic members of the House writing their own letter urging President Obama and the Justice Department to end their opposition to the merger.

Read the full letter here.