Under the proposed agreement, Republic would operate
large regional jets (53 Embraer E175 aircraft) under the
American Eagle brand with service to start in June 2013
and continue to increase through 2015. The agreement
will then extend through 2027, as it will run for 12
years from each of the covered aircraft’s entry into
service.
“Given the lack of disclosure of the economic
considerations that led to this contract, the
relationship of this agreement to AMR’s strategic
choices, and the lack of consideration for Eagle’s
interests, we believe that the Court should decline to
approve the Republic motion,” states the objection
submitted by ALPA.
Republic Airlines is a regional airline subsidiary of
Republic Airways Holdings that operates service as US
Airways Express, Frontier Airlines and United Express
using a fleet of Bombardier Q400NextGen, Embraer 170,
Embraer 175 and Embraer 190 aircraft. It is
headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. The airline is
expected to operate service as American Eagle beginning
in mid-2013.
A
legacy carrier, in the United States, is an airline that
had established interstate routes by the time of the
route liberalization which was permitted by the Airline
Deregulation Act of 1978 and was thus directly affected
by that act. It is distinct from a low-cost carrier, (a
term fostered as a form of disparagement against post
deregulation start-up air carriers, and the traditional
airlines once heavily unionized work groups) which in
the United States are generally new airlines that were
started to compete in the newly deregulated industry.
Typical characteristics of legacy carriers are that
they provide a higher level of services than a
low-cost carrier; for example, a legacy carrier
typically offers first class and/or business class,
a frequent-flyer program, airport lounges, and is a
member of an airline alliance through which it has
partners that agree to provide these services to its
passengers as well. Also, there is a higher level of
services in the cabin, such as meal service and
in-flight entertainment.
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