Well, how's that Delta/Northwest merger working out?

How's the latest example of merger mania working out, dare I ask?

Guess what? It isn't.

What??? After all those other corporate mergers worked out so great??? Wait, they didn't.

After the governments of the United States and the European Union rubber-stamped Delta's takeover of Northwest Airlines, Delta has now added a surcharge for paying checked baggage fees at the airport (as opposed to online).

This isn't even the first new fee I've heard of from Delta since the merger. Once a merger in any industry takes place, you usually find that your pants don't fall down as much - because your wallet is thinner.

Then again, maybe the latest surcharge is better than the airlines crying about how broke they are and getting the taxpayers to bail them out again. It's been about 6 whole years since they've pulled that scam, so you know they're due for another handout.

We need to reintroduce airline regulation. If the federal government doesn't, the states should.

Meanwhile, Delta still has the worst percentage of delayed flights. (One recent flight stayed on the ground in New York for 5 hours.)

(Source: http://www.ajc.com/business/delta-adds-96809.html;
http://www.kypost.com/news/national/story/DOT-says-more-flights-were-on-time-in-May/rzoT63QhPE-2LgDihuWrTw.cspx)