United Airlines CEO confirms he approached American Airlines about merger

united airlines ceo scott kirby confirmed monday he approached american airlines about a merger, but american rejected the idea. kirby said he shared his "big, bold vision" because he thought they could do "something incredible for customers together." american's ceo robert isom called the merger "anticompetitive" and bad for customers. kirby had floated the idea to the trump administration earlier this year, hoping the combination would create a big global airline to compete with foreign rivals. trump said last week he doesn't "like having them merge," though he suggested the government could help struggling carrier spirit airlines. kirby said without a willing partner, "something this big simply can't get done." he reiterated that foreign airlines fly more than half of long-haul seats into the u.s., and a combined united-american would compete better. spirit and the trump administration are in advanced talks for a rescue package.