And terrible incentives: http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2012/07/09/american-and-us-airways-dance-around-a-merger/ http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2012/07/09/american-a

And terrible incentives: http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2012/07/09/american-and-us-airways-dance-around-a-merger/ http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2012/07/09/american-and-us-airwa... tl;dr; the executives make the big money by rewarding themselves for going a certain amount of time between bankruptcies