American Airlines CEO calls United merger ‘a non-starter’: ‘No way to view that as anything but anti-competitive’

American Airlines CEO Robert Isom on Thursday became the latest, and most consequential “no” on the rumored American-United merger. In an interview with CNBC Thursday shortly after the company reported first-quarter earnings, Isom called the merger a “non-starter from the get-go.” “At the end of the day, there’s no way to view that as anything but anti-competitive,” he said. He added the deal would be “bad for customers, ultimately bad for American Airlines, bad for our team.” Rejection of the deal came swiftly from all sides shortly after United CEO Scott Kirby reportedly pitched the idea to a Trump administration official. But President Donald Trump was one of the first to kill it. While he has appeared more open to big deals than his predecessors—he played an active role in the $81 billion Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger —he said in an interview with CNBC on Tuesday “I don’t like having them merge.” So, too, did a bipartisan pair of legislators. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Sen. Mike Lee (R-Ariz.) warned the deal would cause harm to consumers. Isom declined to mention whether or not United made a formal inquiry to American. But last Friday, American issued a statement saying that it is “not engaged with or interested in any discussions regarding a merger with United Airlines.” United and American Airlines didn’t immediately respond to Fortune ’s request for comment. Why the Iran war is fueling merger chatter One issue potentially driving consolidation chatter is rising fuel costs. Jet fuel prices have spiked from $100 a barrel pre-war levels to nearly $200 a barrel, spelling trouble for even the larger carriers. Now, United on Wednesday said the airline may have to raise prices by 15% to 20%. And German carrier Lufthansa just slashed 20,000 flights as the European market endures some of the most brutal conditions amid the ongoing energy crisis. Those price shocks have contributed to much of the discussion around consolidation. “Is there room for s…