Delta, Northwest seeking support for merger

By Mark McSherry

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Executives of Delta Air Lines Inc (DAL.N) hope to win over Northwest Airlines Corp NWA.N pilots, who oppose Delta's bid to buy Northwest for more than $3 billion to create the world's biggest airline by traffic.

While Delta pilots would get a 3.5 percent equity stake in the new airline, and support the all-stock deal, the leaders of Northwest's pilots said Monday night the union will use "all resources available to aggressively oppose" it after the two unions could not agree on how to work under one seniority umbrella.

Seniority determines when pilots work, what they fly and how much they get paid. Some analysts said the opposition of the Northwest pilots could pose a serious threat to the deal.

The proposed deal comes as major U.S. carriers try to counter skyrocketing fuel prices and a weak domestic economy.

Delta Chief Executive Richard Anderson said on Tuesday the carrier aims to fully integrate its two pilots' groups as soon as possible.

At a press conference in New York, Delta executive vice president Mike Campbell said the airlines had eight or nine months to get the Northwest pilots on board.

"If we succeed in that, it will be revolutionary, and it will be a game changer," said Campbell.

In an interview on NBC television, Anderson said that before the deal closes, he wants to have an agreement with pilots from both airlines.

"We're halfway there. It's part of the process, and we think we'll be successful in getting the Northwest pilots under the Delta collective bargaining agreement with a resolution on the seniority between the two groups prior to closing," Anderson told NBC.

"We're going to work hard, and we tried very hard to have an agreement with both the Northwest and Delta pilots," Anderson said on NBC.

AIR FRANCE

The airlines hope that mergers lead to higher fares and reduced competition as combined carriers reduce flights and allow airlines to use increased market power to raise fares.

According to reports, the airlines most likely to follow Delta and Northwest could be UAL Corp's (UAUA.O) United Airlines and Continental Airlines Inc (CAL.N), which have been in merger talks for months.

French-Dutch airlines operator Air France-KLM (AIRF.PA) said in a statement it would be pleased with a Delta-Northwest tie-up, which would strengthen its partnerships on the transatlantic market.

Air France has a transatlantic joint venture with Delta, and Dutch-based KLM has a similar arrangement with Northwest.