Emirates-Etihad May Be Airline Deal of the Decade. Here's Why. - Bloomberg

Emirates-Etihad May Be Airline Deal of the Decade. Here's Why. - Bloomberg:

A combination of Dubai-based Emirates and Abu Dhabi’s Etihad would be the airline industry’s deal of the decade, if it can be pulled off.

Executives at the two companies have been quietly laying plans to create what would be the world’s biggest airline by passenger traffic, according to people familiar with the discussions. The group would have combined revenue of $29.3 billion and control almost 5 percent of the world’s airline routes.

Etihad and Emirates publicly deny merger talks, but an exploratory look at Emirates taking over Etihad’s airline operations remains on the table, according to the people, who asked not to be identified discussing private considerations. Talks have occurred on-and-off for some time, one of the people said, and any deal would face antitrust as well as political challenges.