Kirby's flag-carrier talk still points to a United mega-merger

Kirby said he wants U.S. citizens to feel proud of United as the country’s flag carrier, matching the pride people in Dubai attach to Emirates. One Mile at a Time notes he has previously called United the best airline in aviation history and proposed mega-mergers with American or Delta to create a U.S. flag carrier.

Those combinations have been judged unlikely to win regulatory approval, but he has not dropped the theme. The author argues the flag-carrier talk is still about making United by far the largest U.S. airline through consolidation, and suggests Kirby may see a better chance of approval under Trump, a reading tied to Kirby’s flattering comments about him.

The piece says ending big-three competition would drop the checks on pricing and passenger experience, making it easier to raise fares and hold them. There is nothing to book; treat the flag-carrier merger comments as political narrative, not an imminent deal.