Fliers sound resigned to Delta-NWA combination

It's not high finance on the minds of most travelers, but whether their flights will get them to the sales meeting on time or the trip to the in-laws in Florida will stay affordable.

Some travelers at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport shared their views this week on the announced Northwest-Delta airline merger. Some were sad to see a Minnesota name disappear. Many saw the combination as inevitable for the carriers' survival, citing sky-high fuel prices. And most still expected the unfolding details to include job cuts, flight reductions and fare increases.

To Howard Rogers of Minneapolis, the promise of new "efficiencies" by the merged carriers is just a nice way to say cutbacks.

"I expect higher prices or less service, or both, or maybe less choice," said Rogers, who flies often between the Twin Cities and a pastry company he owns in Bangkok, Thailand.

Mostly, he hates to see the Northwest name -- and likely more -- disappear into Atlanta-based Delta.

"I just think it's probably going to end in losing jobs in Minnesota," Rogers said.

And for all its size, Northwest Airlines still has a hometown feel for him. For example, when he had to reschedule his latest return flight, he spoke to a woman in the airline's Chisholm, Minn., call center.

Elizabeth Powers of Eagan doesn't think much of Delta. Her last experience with the carrier was a 2 1/2-hour sit in the airplane at Atlanta on a flight back to Minneapolis. But Powers, who travels frequently to visit friends across the country, doesn't plan to curtail her flying in protest.

"With the cost of gas, it's still cheaper than driving," she said.

Even if the merged carriers raise fares to cover fuel costs?

"As long as the increases directly correlate to the fuel costs, that's fine," she said.

Ed Dobbles of Bloomington doesn't expect the merger to change much for him.

He's not concerned about bumpy service as the two carriers merge their operations.

But he's not happy about another recent development: separate fees for services, such as the new $25 charge to check a second bag.

"Those annoy me," he said.

Jay Miller of Salt Lake City has two worries.

"We could see a pilot strike before this is over," said Miller, who flies often as a manager at a medical device company there. He also worries that Delta will demote his hometown from hub status and thin its flight schedule there.

Joseph O'Neill, a Kansas City businessman and frequent flier on most U.S. carriers, expects the merger to be good for the two airlines and for him.

"I think it's great," O'Neill said. "They are two well-run companies, and I don't want either one to go out of business."

And in the bargain, his trips to Minneapolis could get cheaper, because Northwest's huge dominance will diminish.

"Now, when you fly from anywhere into Minneapolis, its prices are high," he said.

Larry Totten of Buffalo flies two or three times a year, mostly to visit family.

"It's necessary," he said. "They can't make money with the price of [fuel] right now."

Still, he doesn't expect those efficiencies to manage the whole fix.

"I expect to pay more; I don't think it can be avoided," he said. "It's just what we're going through right now."