US Airways set to pitch bid to Delta, creditors
Share with others:
ATLANTA -- US Airways plans to pitch its $8.6 billion unsolicited offer for Delta Air Lines in a meeting this week with Delta and the committee representing the unsecured creditors in Delta's bankruptcy case.
Daniel Golden, a lawyer for the creditors committee, said in a telephone interview yesterday that the committee's advisers would be present at the meeting in New York, along with US Airways officials and Delta senior executives.
Mr. Golden said the creditors committee would go into the meeting with an open mind, even as Delta has said it opposes a merger and hopes to emerge from bankruptcy in the first half of next year as a stand-alone company. The head of Delta's pilots union, which is a member of the creditors committee, also has expressed support for Delta's plan.
"We have great respect for Delta's management," Mr. Golden said.
"We think they've done a very good job in Chapter 11. But at the end of the day, we're going to make a determination about what works best for the estate and the unsecured creditors."
The meeting will be the first between all three sides since US Airways made its hostile bid for Delta public on Nov. 15. It will give US Airways an opportunity to pitch its offer directly to the creditors.
No timetable has been put on when the creditors committee will make a decision on whether it will support the US Airways offer or Delta's stand-alone plan, Mr. Golden said. Delta still must file its formal reorganization plan, which it expects to do by next month.
Mr. Golden said the creditors would weigh the pros and cons of the offer against any other offers that may come in and the merits of Delta's stand-alone plan.
"We have a job to do, which is to maximize recoveries for unsecured creditors," Mr. Golden said.
US Airways sent another newsletter to its employees Monday explaining the regulatory issues that will be considered by the government in deciding whether to approve the deal. The company stated again its belief that there still would be plenty of competition after a US Airways-Delta deal.
US Airways shares slipped 98 cents, or 1.8 percent, to $58.18, yesterday, continuing a slight downdraft from a 52-week closing high of $62.95, set Friday, a week after unveiling its bid for Delta.
First Published November 29, 2006 12:00 am
