WASHINGTON/CHICAGO ¨C United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby pitched the potential for merging with American Airlines in a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in late February, two sources said, raising an industry-reshaping deal likely to be met with significant regulatory scrutiny.
A combination of two of the largest U.S. network carriers would mark by far the most consequential consolidation since the last wave of big airline mergers ?ended more than a decade ago and further tighten a U.S. domestic market already dominated by four players of roughly equal size.
Including international flights, United and American were ?already the ?world¡¯s two largest airlines by available capacity in 2025, according to OAG data, and their combined size would far eclipse rival ?Delta Air Lines, which ranked third.
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