August 11, 2009 07:36 PM UTC

"Just Say No" To Southwest Airlines' Frontier Takeover

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• by: Colorado Pols

We interrupt our normal political coverage to put in a brief plug for a hometown favorite we don’t want to lose.

We love Frontier Airlines. Some of your hosts do travel quite a bit for business purposes, and you can’t beat Frontier from Denver for convenience. Modern, clean planes with seatback television service, and nonstop flights to almost any place you need to go–especially their all-important direct service to Washington National that just about every Colorado politico of stature relies on.

On the other hand, Southwest Airlines sucks. They’re called “flying cattle cars” for a reason. They’re the kings of the three-connection trip. And have you ever been on a flight where they start singing? It’s a bit like the opening scene of a bad horror movie.

And if something isn’t done, a lot more cheesy/dehumanizing Southwest Airlines culture is in every Denver business traveler’s future–as the Denver Post reports:

Southwest Airlines has offered $170 million to acquire bankrupt Frontier Airlines, an amount that is $61 million more than what the only other bidder has proposed.

Details of the cash bid submitted Monday will be presented by Southwest officials today and Wednesday to Frontier.

“This provides us a great way to grow substantially in a city that is very important to us,” said Bob Jordan, Southwest’s executive vice president of strategy and planning.

Southwest is bidding against Republic Airways Holdings, which initially offered $108.75 million. The companies now face off in an auction.

If Dallas-based Southwest is successful, analysts say it would eliminate a rival at Denver International Airport and give Southwest access to new markets…

Southwest would buy 80 percent of Frontier’s Airbus fleet, or about 40 jets, and all of Frontier’s subsidiary, Lynx Aviation, and its commuter turboprops, Jordan said.

Over two years, the Frontier fleet would transition to Boeing 737s, which Southwest flies.

No. Okay? No. Come on Republic, beat back the LUV hordes and keep Griswold the Bear flying.

We now resume your regularly scheduled programming.