President Donald Trump on Tuesday floated the idea of federal aid for struggling carrier Spirit Aviation Holdings Inc. (OTC: FLYYQ), saying he'd like to see someone buy the airline and that the government might step in to help.
"I'd love somebody to buy Spirit, it's 14,000 jobs, and maybe the federal government should help that one out," the president said in a CNBC interview.
But while Trump is open to helping Spirit, he made clear he's not a fan of a potential merger between United Airlines Holdings (NASDAQ: UAL) and American Airlines Group (NASDAQ: AAL). "I don't like having them merge," Trump said Tuesday, responding to a question about the proposed deal that has drawn criticism from senators in both parties. Trump said he only recently learned about the merger proposal but was already against it.
Trump doesn't oppose mergers in general, but he expressed concern about consolidation in the aerospace industry, suggesting it leads to less competition and can make companies "lazy." He also noted that both United and American are "doing very well."
American Airlines dismissed merger speculation with United on Monday, saying it is neither engaged in nor interested in any talks. The carrier warned that such a deal would reduce competition and hurt consumers, arguing it would clash with Trump's antitrust stance. The statement follows reports that United CEO Scott Kirby floated the merger idea to Trump in February.
