Alaska Airlines has announced that the plan to acquire Hawaiian Airlines has cleared the U.S. Justice Department stage, as the period for antitrust regulators to finish an investigation of the deal ended without a lawsuit to block the deal, which again is the development, eight months after the two carriers announced a $1.9-billion agreement to combine operations.
Notably, mergers and acquisitions were never easy in the aviation industry as they have faced tough scrutiny from regulators. Earlier this year, a federal judge blocked JetBlue Airways’ planned $3.8 billion acquisition of the low-cost carrier Spirit Airlines.
Alaska Airlines said in a statement on its website that the deal cleared a regulatory hurdle when,
“the time period for the US Department of Justice to complete its regulatory investigation of the proposed combination of Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines under the HSR Act expired.”
Passing to the next stage of approval, both the carriers now must win approval from the U.S. Transportation Department before the deal closes. Further details on this procedure aren.t available at this moment.
Once materialized, the combination would become the largest merger of U.S. carriers since Alaska merged with Virgin America eight years ago.
The joint statement of both the carriers believe, as airlines rooted in the 49th and 50th U.S. states, which are uniquely reliant upon air travel, Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines share a deep commitment to caring for their employees, guests and communities.
Alaska Airlines said in its statement,
“The time period for the U.S. Department of Justice to complete its regulatory investigation of the proposed combination of Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines under the [Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements] Act has expired,” “This is a significant milestone in the process to join our airlines.”
"Following that step, we will complete work to close the transaction, and proceed with integrating the two companies, welcoming Hawaiian Airlines guests and employees into Alaska Air Group, and expanding benefits and choice for consumers throughout Hawai‘i, the Asia-Pacific region, continental United States and globally," Alaska Airlines added further.
Not an easy task, the development comes after the DOJ won a court ruling in January which effectively blocked JetBlue Airways’ acquisition of Spirit Airlines. The Justice Department said if JetBlue were allowed to buy Spirit, it would especially hurt travelers who depend on Spirit’s low fares.
Last year, the DOJ also won another suit that stopped a partnership in the Northeast between JetBlue and American Airlines. This step took effect in August 2023 after a lengthy court battle with theU.S. Department of Justice that saw a federal judge strike the alliance down, arguing it stymied competition and, ultimately, hurt consumers.
On the current merger effort, Hawaiian could see an opportunity after going through a bunch of challenges in the months leading up to the deal, which the two carriers announced December 2023. The drag for the carrier included the Maui wildfires, increased competition from Southwest Airlines, and the slower travel demand from Asia during two years after the Pandemic.
Alaska and Hawaiian have been working with Transportation on few lingering issues, according to the SEC filing.
Display Picture By : kofromhawaii (IG)
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