by Mia Taylor
Last updated: 4:50 PM ET, Thu November 20, 2025
During a recent appearance on the Airlines Confidential Podcast, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby all but predicted the end of American Airlines.
Asked by the podcast host Scott McCartney to discuss where he sees the industry in five to 10 years, Kirby said the market will be dominated by “two large, revenue diverse, full service, brand loyal airlines.”
When prompted by McCartney to clarify whether he meant to say three large airlines and not two, Kirby replied:“There’s two today, and there will only be two,” adding that “everyone else is sort of competing for spill traffic.”
United CEO Scott Kirby (photo via United Airlines)
To be clear, for those not totally following, Kirby was indicating that United Airlines and Delta Air Lines will be the two primary airlines in the United States in five to 10 years time, meaning American will no longer exist.
His prediction follows the worsening of American’s financial position in recent years, which has taken place in tandem with United’s significantly improving performance.
The United CEO also was candid about what he sees as the challenges American Airlines is facing in Chicago where United is continuing to gain market share.
Kirby told the podcast host that he “wouldn’t want to play American’s hand” in Chicago, and he “knows when to hold ’em, and knows when to fold ’em.”
By contrast, Kirby offered positive commentary for United’s other competitor - Delta Air Lines. Though he did quip that United has already overtaken Delta.
Kirby also said during the interview with McCartney that the remaining airlines in the United States 10 years time (beyond United and Delta) “are going to be competing on price, and I think collectively, they’ll be smaller than they are today.
This is not the first time Kirby has expressed criticism of American Airlines. His past commentary has included stating in the past that there’s only room for two premium airlines in the U.S.
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