Scott McCartney at the WSJ writes today about the financially successful, but operationally abysmal, merger of US Airways and America West. Among other things, he says this:
Tying two networks together has been a financial success, saving thousands of jobs at two distressed airlines and creating a nationwide low-cost carrier. But almost every airline that has bought another has suffered service declines while workers, equipment, facilities, computer systems and aircraft try to mesh. Reservation systems proved a particularly difficult problem for US Airways, leading to many customer problems.
And their service was stellar before the merger? Check a few installments at Road Warrior.
