[JimInCal]

http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/index.php?sty=79968

Here's a long article from the East Valley Trib this morning by Donna Hogan. It is a good update of the current state of US Airway's hostile takeover bid for Delta. I only excerpted a small section regarding the future headquarters and hub issues. If this goes through, Phoenix/Tempe would score quite a coo if the headquarters were in the metro area...probably a long shot verses Atlanta.

HEADQUARTERS AND HUBS

"Whether a merged airline would land in US Airways’ Tempe headquarters or Delta’s Atlanta home are only of concern to the two hometown markets.

US Airways spokeswoman Andrea Rader said a decision about that is not even on the company’s radar screen yet. Economic development experts in both markets may be working feverishly on their pitches, with thousands of jobs — and considerable prestige — at stake. But US Airways has more immediate issues to work on first, Rader said.

"We’ve not been actively lobbied,” Rader said. “But people are letting us know their cities are fabulous.”

And Rader said both places would still have plenty of US Airways employees, regardless of the headquarters location.

“No matter where we end up, we will have a substantial presence in both cities,” she said.

Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and Atlanta Hartsfield International Airport would unquestionably remain major hubs. Not so other cities, said Calyon Securities airline analyst Ray Neidl. US Airways hub Charlotte, N.C., is too close to Delta hub Atlanta. Delta’s Salt Lake City hub is too close to Phoenix."