Delta pilots union chief says merger 'may indeed be at our door'

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ATLANTA (AP) -- The head of Delta Air Lines' pilots union says a merger involving the carrier may be close.

Lee Moak, chairman of the union's executive committee, says in a letter that "consolidation may indeed be at our door."

Moak says union leaders are meeting in Atlanta this week in part to discuss "the fact that our company may soon be involved in some form of industry consolidation."

Moak notes in the letter that fuel prices are at record highs and Delta's stock price since the company emerged from Chapter 11 last April has fallen dramatically. Its shares soared nearly 15 percent in trading today.

Moak did not say in the letter how the union is aware Delta may be close to a merger. The pilots union has a representative on Delta's board of directors.