Southwest makes bid for Frontier

Southwest Airlines has announced it will bid a minimum of $113.6 million for its low-fare rival Frontier Airlines, which is currently operating under bankruptcy protection.  If the bid is successful, Dallas-based Southwest, currently the largest low-fare carrier in the United States, would become the second-largest carrier in the highly competitive market of Denver.┬á┬á United Airlines currently controls around 50 percent of the Denver market.┬á Southwest has said it would make substantial investments in Frontier and operate it as a separate stand-alone carrier until it can be absorbed into Southwest. It would also eventually retire FrontierÔÇÖs Airbus fleet and take on additional 737s. "We are excited about the opportunity to submit a bid," said Gary Kelly, Southwest's chairman, president and CEO.  "We see a strong fit between our company cultures, a mutual commitment to high quality customer service, and similar entrepreneurial roots." The non-binding bid could top the $108.8 million offered for Frontier by Republic Airways in June. Any interested parties have until August 10 to submit a binding bid for the carrier. Frontier currently has 5,000 employees and 51 aircraft, while Southwest has 35,000 employees and more than 500 aircraft.┬á * ┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á*┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á *