The rash of airline mergers and takeover talks at the end of last year may be good news for investment bankers, private equity titans, lawyers and certain airline execs and shareholders who stand to profit from long-awaited industry consolidation. But when carriers disappear, it’s disastrous for business travelers—and pleasure travelers for that matter. What’s more, when qualified startup airlines are stalled and blocked from slugging it out in the free-market arena, by regulators and competitors, passengers take it on the chin and in the wallet. It’s happening and you’ll pay for it.

A couple days before Christmas, Virgin America, heavily touted as a low-fare but frill-laden SFO-based airline, said it expects the DOT will reject its application to operate in the United States, threatening its much-delayed launch and possibly scuttling the proposed service entirely. That would be a blow not only to the Bay Area economy, but to San Francisco/Silicon Valley businesspeople who do not want to drive to Oakland and business travelers everywhere looking for options and more lift. The statement could be a ploy to rally grass roots support to pressure Washington lawmakers and regulators, singing the praises of competition to the Democrat-controlled Congress.

The big hammering of business travelers would come if the Justice Department rolls over and approves US Airways’ $8.8 billion hostile takeover bid for Delta, thwarting the Atlanta carrier’s exit from Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Aside from an immediate slashing of flights, fewer reward seats and upgrades, higher fares, it’s a certainty employee moods aloft and on the ground will be grim to grumpy. USAir has a notoriously poor reputation of merging airline cultures when it acquires other carriers. And if you talk to America West and USAir cabin crews—and I have—nobody’s happy with that consolidation. Plus, it hasn’t even been fully consummated yet. There are gripes galore and it’s the passengers who bear the brunt of that bloodshed. Delta’s workforce has long been battered under inept management and hopeful of a turnaround under current chairman/CEO Gerald Grinstein who’s fiercely fighting the US Air attack.

Meantime, will United swallow Continental and AirTran gobble up Midwest ? Certainly hope not, because no good will come out of it for those of us who pay the freight. I recently flew roundtrip on United from Kona , Hawaii to SFO and had superb service from the flight attendants in both directions. Was almost like flying used to be. But in both cases, the attendants were former Pan Am crewmembers who still have their loyalties to their previous employer. Despite the cuts and cutbacks in pay and benefits they’ve endured, both said they look after passengers “the way we did at Pan Am.” What can you do to preserve some independence? Write your Congressperson and let the free market pilot the planes.

Africa-bound? Little-known North American Airlines has weekly scheduled Coach and Business Class 767 service from JFK to Accra in Ghana and three times weekly to Lagos , Nigeria and Banjul , the Gambia . North American (www.flynaa.com) just scrapped its BWI to Banjul flight so Washington , D.C. area travelers now have to shuttle to JFK. NAA also cut back on Accra frequencies when Delta entered that market…Southwest Airlines is the first choice of corporate travel buyers over all U.S. airlines in the 9 th annual Business Travel

News Annual Airline Survey . Surprising since Southwest has no Business Class, doesn’t have contract with corporate travel managers or an international route system, BTN notes…www.dininginfrance.com dumped Michelin three-star-rated French Laundry, Yountville , California , from its 2007 list of 10 best French restaurants in the world outside of France . The choices: Caprice in Hong Kong; Domaine de Chateauvieux in Satigny, Switzerland; Joel Robuchon in Las Vegas and Tokyo (but not London, surprisingly); Le Louis XV in Monte Carlo; Per se in New York; Michel Bras Toya Japon (cq) in Kokkaido; Le Pont de Brent, Brent, Switzerland; Roschat in Crissier, Switzerland; Schwarzwaldstube in Baiersbronn, Germany…An outfit called Fare Buzz has consolidator fares that claim to be 40 percent to 60 percent under Business and First Class tariffs. Plus, you can deal with a human on a 24-hour basis. Call 888-808-4123.

Smart Stays ...Hotel room rates of $500 nightly don’t raise eyebrows in Manhattan these days but elsewhere in the world, you can get a week’s stay for that price. The 150-room Springhill Suites at theNashville Airport is a hot ticket with business travelers—and it’s not surprising. For a studio suite with a king bed, two TVs, free Internet in the room, gratis Wi-Fi elsewhere plus breakfast, I was quoted $75 a night on a Tuesday through the global reservations center…www.springhillsuites.com…Silicon Valley is roaring back with a new generation of dot.com companies and hotel rates are gaining altitude too. But the newish 224-room Cypress Hotel in Cupertino with free Wi-Fi throughout, a hosted wine hour and gratis self-parking, has rooms starting at $109. AAA discounts of 5 percent are offered. Check www.kimptonhotels.com…Kimpton recently sold the 177-room Galleria Park Hotel in downtown San Francisco to rival boutique hotel group, Joie d’Vie and, after a massive upgrade, rates start at $139 nightly. There’s no charge for in-room Internet and Wi-Fi and the new business center, with two PCs and a laser printer, is also complimentary. www.galleriapark.com… Las Vegas ’s new 225-room Platinum Hotel and Spa has extended its $129 nightly rate for a one-bedroom suite. Rooms have 42-inch plasma TVs, fully stocked kitchens, electric fireplaces. Internet, however is $13 a day. The business center is outsourced but has a Dell XP and a Mac at a whopping 70 cents a minute. www.lvplatinum.com.

Don’t Miss : Pacific Aviation Museum at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu has the Aeronca 65TC, the only surviving aircraft that was airborne during the December 7 attack by 150 Japanese Zero fighters. The 42,442-square-foot museum tells the story of military aviation in the Pacific during WWII. www.pacificaviationmuseum.org. Don’t forget. Starting January 23, you’ll need to show a valid U.S. passport on flights between the United States , Canada , Mexico , Central and South America , the Caribbean and Bermuda .

Travel Offer. Hang out at the C Lazy U Ranch in Colorado this winter and get 60 percent off your airline ticket with Frontier. Talk about savings. Go to http://www.clazyu.com/Frontier.htmfor more information.

Chris Barnett has reported on great saloons and bars worldwide for 25 years for the Los Angeles Times and the in-flight magazines for United, TWA and PSA, and has been a contributing editor for Frequent Flyer magazine for over 10 years. Chris also specializes in travel strategies that save business travelers time, money and anxiety, and he is the creator of Frequent Flyer's On the Road With column that chronicles how celebrities and high-profile executives travel and the magazine's Baggage Beat, which showcases hot new luggage products and innovations in the baggage industry. He's based in San Francisco. Chris can be reached at cbarn@aol.com.