The marriage of Northwest Airlines and Delta Air Lines will entail the bride moving into the groom's house. I do suggest a dowry, however, one that's been an institution in airline history almost as old as commercial flight itself.
I'm referring to Northwest's characteristic red tail. It's readily identifiable from great distances, and for good reason. In pioneer days of flight, planes occasionally went down. If they were to go down during the winter, the red tail was easy to see for search parties, even if the rest of the plane was buried in a snowbank.
Delta would be giving up very little by splashing a bit of red paint on the tails of its fleet. It will help to keep alive the memory of one of Minnesota's most important flight industries.
JOHN ANDERSON, MINNEAPOLIS
