To be clear, the US Airways and AmericaWest “merger” is a shot gun wedding. The grouping of these airlines was not born from competitive scheming by either. The combination of two struggling carriers is at the behest of aircraft lessor, General Electric. GE’s capital risk exposure is minimized by consolidation. Collapse averted, GE will take back a much smaller, and manageable percentage for re-marketing to Europe and Asia. The entire industry is on a very short leash. The lenders are calling the shots.