June 09, 2007

AirTran's tender offer set to expire

AirTran Holdings Inc. isn't likely to announce until early next week whether it will again extend its tender offer to acquire Midwest Air Group Inc.

The tender offer is set to expire at the close of business Friday, but AirTran has until the opening of the stock market on the next business day -- June 11 -- to decide whether to extend the offer. Orlando, Fla.-based AirTran Holdings, parent company of AirTran Airways, has extended previous tender offers and has increased its bid for Midwest multiple times.
AirTran's latest offer consists of $389 million cash and stock for Oak Creek-based Midwest Air Group (AMEX: MEH), which operates Midwest Airlines.

AirTran (NYSE: AAI)previously reported that as of the close of business on May 16, shareholders had agreed to tender more than 13.9 million shares of Midwest to Galena Acquisition Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of AirTran, which represents more than 56.6 percent of all outstanding shares of Midwest Air Group. AirTran decided at that time to extend the offer.

"We don't expect the results to be significantly higher," AirTran spokesman Kevin Healy said.

Midwest and AirTran also remain locked in a proxy battle for three seats on Midwest's nine-member board of directors. The vote will be decided at Midwest's annual shareholders meeting on June 14.

By The Business Journal
Via: Yahoo! Finance

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