The buyout was widely blamed for ultimately dragging TWA into bankruptcy. Judge A. Jay Cristol today may have been thinking about TWA when he urged Pan Am's executives to continue talks with other potential suitors as well as Icahn before returning to court for another bankruptcy hearing on Monday. It's been two weeks since Pan Am grounded its planes and passenger advocates say travelers have been paying the price. For almost two years, Pan Am has been providing some of the lowest fares on popular routes. Ed Perkins, Editor of Consumer Reports Travel Letter, says all passengers will benefit when Pan Am is back up and running.
Consumers save a lot of money.
The DOT estimated two or three years ago, low fare airlines were saving consumers something like six billion dollars a year because of their impact on the fare structure. That was an attempt to increase market share but analysts say the airline overextended itself. I'm Michelle Brier for Marketplace. It's been said that America's standard of living in the future is tied closely to how well we innovate now. But despite the boom in high-tech, a new assessment on innovation today shows some cause for concern, as Steve Tripoli reports from WBUR in Boston.