Alaska Air CEO on Virgin America Deal: ‘We Wanted More Canvas to Work With’
Photo Credit: Brad Tilden, Alaska Airlines CEO, said the its merger with Virgin America will make the combined airline number one in seat share on the West Coast. Alaska Airlines
Skift Take
The combined Alaska Airlines-Virgin America would give it the leadership position in seat share on the U.S. west coast, make it the fifth largest carrier in the country, and put it in a better position to compete with the legacy carriers.
Calling the bidding process hard-fought and tough, Alaska Air Group CEO Brad Tilden said "the thought has been in our head" for a couple of years to acquire Virgin America and that Alaska Air first approached Virgin America about the deal in October or November.
The "other party" -- JetBlue -- got involved in the bidding for Virgin America after Alaska Air initiated the process, Tilden told analysts in a conference call today about Alaska Air's $2.6 billion cash acquisition, or $4 billion in enterprise value, of Virgin America.
Asked whether the acquisition was defensive in nature, Tilden rejected that notion, saying "we just wanted more canvas to work with."
He explained that today
