Using a difference-in-differences technique, this paper examines the relationship between market competition and market price in the airline industry by presenting a case study of United and Continental Airlines merger. I find that, in nonstop markets, the price for routes formerly competitive between United and Continental Airlines increases significantly following the merger. This result is robust after controlling for route-specific factors and using different samples and specifications. The market power effect dominates efficiency gains consistently throughout the whole merger process and after the merger was finalized. I also find that the increase in price is only on directly affected routes, not those out of adjacent airports. Since both United and Continental Airlines are legacy carriers, this paper provides informative results for future antitrust decision-making.

本文采用差异化技术，通过对美国联合航空和美国大陆航空合并的案例研究，研究了航空业中市场竞争与市场价格之间的关系。我发现，在不间断的市场中，合并后美联航和美国大陆航空之间原本具有竞争力的航线价格会大幅上涨。在控制特定于路线的因素并使用不同的样本和规格后，此结果是可靠的。在整个合并过程中以及合并完成之后，市场力量效应始终主导着效率提升。我还发现，价格上涨仅发生在直接受影响的航线上，而不是相邻机场以外的航线。由于美联航和美国大陆航空都是传统航空公司，