Unexpected turbulence - FT.com Three cheers for the US air carriers. Ironically, Department of Justice's lawsuit to block the merger between US Airways and American Airlines is the industry's crowning achievement. The Feds have asserted, incredibly, that operating an airline is just too profitable a business. That is a long way from the cycle of bankruptcy, labour squabbles and messy restructurings that had previously defined the industry. But this nirvana of airline viability is bad news for the shareholders and creditors in the US Airways/American tie-up that were counting on the synergies that competitors Delta and United Continental reaped in their transformative mergers. Yet, even according to the calculations of the DoJ and the carriers, there may be a compromise that satisfies the regulators and leaves something on the table for shareholders. So far this year, United and Delta have both seen their shares increase in excess of 40 per cent. Between an improving economy and the benefits of consolidation, the airlines are forecasting profits as far as the horizon extends. Most telling about the industry's optimism: Delta and Alaska Airlines have begun paying dividends. These tailwinds will still propel American and US Airways, regardless of whether they are allowed to join forces. But it seems unfair that this combination could be quashed when the new US Airways/American would be about the same size as Delta and United. The Feds estimate that this merger would cost consumers "hundreds of millions," annually. The historically aggressive pricing at US Airways along with American's expansion plans would be dumped after the deal, say the Feds. American and US Airways estimated $1bn in annual synergies, but with the economic harm "only" in the hundreds of millions there is a range where a deal creates value for investors, but consumers are protected.