How Northwest 'Took Over' Delta

In one major respect, the new Delta differs from Northwest, because while Northwest frequently had conflicts with its unions, Delta continues to maintain a positive relationship with its pilots. The pilots backed the merger, which other unions opposed, and moved to quickly integrate seniority lists. As it always has, Delta is resisting other unions' efforts to organize workers, including workers who were union members at Northwest.

Delta spokeswoman Betsy Talton says Delta continues to have a "distinctly Delta culture that's been built over decades (and that) continues to be nurtured through positive, direct relationships and a philosophy of sharing successes with frontline employees through equity, profit sharing and monthly operational bonuses.

"From this foundation, we continue to integrate best practices and talent from companies at the top of their industry to build an even stronger Delta," she says. "Our merger provides the opportunity to incorporate best practices from Northwest including expertise that is the foundation of its reputation for strong operational performance."

Regarding the recent conflicts with the airport, ASTA and the regionals, Talton says: " We're constantly looking at every aspect of our business and enhancing policies and procedures to ensure a strong business mode -- one able to succeed through economic cycles and the changing landscape of the airline industry."

Aviation consultant Robert Mann says Delta has clearly seen a cultural transition, part of which naturally follows a merger creating the world's largest airline. "When you get to the size Delta is now, you can afford to be the 800-pound gorilla, and maybe they are getting used to that role," he says. "When the industry outperformed Delta by 13% in (revenue per available seat mile), how aggressive could you be with travel agents when someone was egregiously mispricing? How much did you want to (anger) the Atlanta airport, which wants to double the per passenger cost, when you only had one place where you could grow?"

"So part of it is evolutionary," Mann says. "The other part is the function of a rapid influx of some rather more brass-knuckled personalities from a decidedly more brass-knuckled corporate culture."

Shares of Delta finished higher on Wednesday, up 20 cents, or 4.7% to $4.46.