Appaloosa Management LP has positioned itself to benefit from a possible merger between bankrupt AMR Corp. and US Airways Group Inc. after taking stakes in both airlines, Bloomberg News reported on Friday. While the hedge fund run by David Tepper is not lobbying for a merger, it favors consolidation and may opt later to push for a deal. Appaloosa is US Airways’ top shareholder and has amassed AMR debt that could be converted to equity in a chapter 11 restructuring, court records show. Owning US Airways stock and AMR debt gives the $15 billion investment firm an opening to sway both sides of a potential combination that would form the world’s largest airline. AMR dismissed the idea of a merger for months before agreeing in May to weigh options besides its stand-alone bankruptcy-exit plan.
