US carriers Republic Airways and Mesa Air Group are set for a historic merger after they entered a definitive agreement for a new publicly traded company.
Jonathan Ornstein, Mesa Air’s Chairman and CEO, described the deal as an “exciting next step” in carrier’s 40 plus-year history that he believes “represents the best outcome for our shareholders, employees, and all of our stakeholders”.
“By bringing the best of our organizations together, we will create a regional carrier that continues to connect communities across America while providing advancement opportunities to our employees,” added Ornstein.
The new combined company will be renamed Republic Airways Holdings and is expected to remain NASDAQ-listed under the new ticker symbol “RJET”.
“We’re thrilled to combine the Republic and Mesa teams to create one of the world’s leading Embraer Jet operators,” said Bryan Bedford, Republic Airways’ President and CEO. “Republic and Mesa share a common mission to connect communities across America, and we believe that we can better achieve that mission together.
He added: “With this combination, we are establishing a single, well-capitalized, public company that will benefit from the deep expertise of Republic and Mesa associates, creating value for all stakeholders well into the future.”
Republic Airways’ history stretches back to 1974 and over its 50 years of regional travel the airline has built a fleet of more than 240 Embraer 170 and 175 aircraft.
In 2024, around 17.5 million passengers flew with Republic Airlines on more than 300,000 flights.
The airline primarily serves Northeast and Mid-Atlantic hubs and operates exclusively under long-term capacity purchase agreements with American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines.
Mesa Air was founded in 1982 and flies its customers to 89 cities in 40 states along with services to the Bahamas, Canada, Cuba, and Mexico.
Mesa Air operates a fleet of 60 Embraer 175 aircraft with more than 250 daily scheduled departures and has around 1,700 employees.
Republic Airways will continue to support American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and United Airlines under its existing capacity purchase agreements (CPA), and Mesa Air’s operations will support United Airlines under a new 10-year CPA, as a result of this transaction.
“The combined company will be led by Republic’s executive leadership team. The Board of Directors will be comprised of six existing directors from the Republic Board of Directors and one independent director from the Mesa Board of Directors,” said a spokesperson for Republic Airways.
They added: “The transaction has been unanimously approved by the Boards of Directors of both companies and is expected to close in either the late third or early fourth quarter of 2025.”
US President Donald Trump recently appointed Bryan Bedford, the former-CEO of Republic Airways, as the new head of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
