On Monday, Alaska Airlines said it had struck an agreement to buy smaller rival Virgin America for $57 a share, or about $2.6 billion, a premium of 47 percent over Virgin America's closing price on Friday. Alaska had been in a competitive bidding war with JetBlue, "a fierce back and forth between the two sides, with multiple bids for a number of days," one unidentified person told The Wall Street Journal, adding that JetBlue "put the pencil down" when the price got too high.
The combined Alaska-Virgin America would be the No. 5 U.S. carrier by traffic, supplanting JetBlue. The deal is expected to face some regulatory scrutiny. Alaska, an 84-year-old airline based in Seattle, is in good financial health and, like Virgin America, consistently wins awards for customer satisfaction. Virgin America began flying in 2007, went public in November 2014, and is jointly owned by Richard Branson's Virgin Group Ltd. and Cyrus Capital Partners LP.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Today's political cartoons - May 11, 2025Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - shark-infested waters, Mother's Day, and more
-
5 fundamentally funny cartoons about the US ConstitutionCartoons Artists take on Sharpie edits, wear and tear, and more
-
In search of paradise in Thailand's western islesThe Week Recommends 'Unspoiled spots' remain, providing a fascinating insight into the past
-
Warren Buffet announces surprise retirementspeed read At the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, the billionaire investor named Vice Chairman Greg Abel his replacement
-
Trump calls Amazon's Bezos over tariff displaySpeed Read The president was not happy with reports that Amazon would list the added cost from tariffs alongside product prices
-
Markets notch worst quarter in years as new tariffs loomSpeed Read The S&P 500 is on track for its worst month since 2022 as investors brace for Trump's tariffs
-
Tesla Cybertrucks recalled over dislodging panelsSpeed Read Almost every Cybertruck in the US has been recalled over a stainless steel panel that could fall off
-
Crafting emporium Joann is going out of businessSpeed Read The 82-year-old fabric and crafts store will be closing all 800 of its stores
-
Trump's China tariffs start after Canada, Mexico pausesSpeed Read The president paused his tariffs on America's closest neighbors after speaking to their leaders, but his import tax on Chinese goods has taken effect
-
Chinese AI chatbot's rise slams US tech stocksSpeed Read The sudden popularity of a new AI chatbot from Chinese startup DeepSeek has sent U.S. tech stocks tumbling
-
Getty Images and Shutterstock merge into a picture powerhouse to combat AIThe Explainer The $3.7 billion deal is one of the largest in the industry's history
