Money world

DALLAS — Southwest Airlines Co. is preparing a $113.6 million bid to buy Frontier Airlines Holdings Inc., a low-cost, low-fare rival that is operating in bankruptcy, Southwest said Thursday.

Frontier previously had agreed to be bought by Republic Airways Holdings Inc., which had offered $108.75 million for Frontier’s stock. Frontier confirmed Southwest’s interest in bidding, but did not express a preference.

"This is a normal part of the auction process, and we thought there could be multiple bids," Frontier spokesman Steve Snyder said. "But the auction process isn’t over yet, and it would not be correct to speculate on an outcome."

The sale is being overseen by a New York federal bankruptcy court, which has set an Aug. 10 deadline for interested bidders to submit their proposal. A court-supervised auction will be held Aug. 11.
"We are excited about the opportunity to submit a bid," Southwest Chairman and Chief Executive Gary Kelly said online cash advance. "We see a strong fit between our company cultures, a mutual commitment to high quality customer service, and similar entrepreneurial roots."

Southwest would be buying an airline with a fleet totally incompatible with Southwest’s fleet of 543 Boeing 737 airplanes. Frontier flies exclusively Airbus airplanes from its A320 family, with an average age of around 2 years.

In a question-and-answer on Southwest’s "Nuts about Southwest" blog, Southwest Airlines Executive Vice President Ron Ricks said Frontier "would continue to operate independently and separately for a period of time with its Airbus aircraft and personnel. Over time, Frontier employees would be hired into Southwest as needed to support our fleet growth and expanded operations."

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