American Airlines passengers heard the news as they arrived at New York's Laguardia Airport this morning.
The 11 billion dollar Valentine's Day marriage between American and U.S. Airways would create the largest carrier in the world.
The new airline will take the American Airlines name and its 900 planes will get a new logo.
Both airlines' CEO's are staying on board, but U.S. Airways chief Doug Parker will be in charge.
This is the fourth major airline merger since 2008. And with this deal four airlines would control 70 percent of the market
Federal regulators still have to approve the deal, so right now passengers can expect business as usual. But in the past, major mergers have created less competition and higher ticket prices on some routes.
The two airlines routes do not have much overlap, and the new carrier will have more than 6700 flights to 336 destinations in 56 countries. And frequent fliers on both airlines will be able to keep their miles.
American flight attendant Carol Moody is excited about the new deal. The deal is expected to be finalized in about two months
The merger deal has been in the works since last summer.
American has been operating while bankrupt since 2011. Creditors forced the airline to consider a merger instead of staying independent.
