As the industry watches to see how United Airlines' strategy performs against American Airlines' strategy, management at United Airlines is anxiously monitoring market signs to determine its next competitive move. It has underestimated American Airlines in the past, and despite the fact that with billions of dollars invested and strategies that cannot be easily abandoned, United Airlines needs to be prepared to respond to changing industry needs as quickly as they are detected.

You have been asked to join a strategic planning discussion, and hoping to contribute to the meeting, you decide to take one more look at United Airlines' situation to see if you can formulate some insight that could give the company an edge against American Airlines. Your analysis should include the following elements:

• Compare the two competitor's strategies. Based on your knowledge of the industry, what conclusions can you draw?

• Outline a rough competitor analysis. What does the level of interdependence between the rivals reveal about competitive behavior that can be expected from American Airlines?

• Evaluate the pros and cons of United Airlines outsourcing strategy. Do you agree with the company's decision to offload parts production?

• Review United Airlines cooperative strategy. What are the risks of its partnership arrangements?

• Discuss the ways in which United Airlines can improve international strategy.

• Identify and describe some of the near-term and long-term results you anticipate in the airplane production industry.