Business Notes Airlines

After a marathon bidding session for the prime pieces of the bankrupt Pan Am, the spoils went last week to the most low-profile of the Big Three U.S. carriers: Delta. The Atlanta-based airline bested its rivals with a $1.7 billion bid for assets that will put Delta on a par with megacarriers American and United. Delta will acquire Pan Am's Northeastern shuttle, its North Atlantic routes and the airline's strategic hub in Frankfurt. Pan Am will survive as a shadow of its once mighty self, providing service to the Caribbean and Latin America. But Delta will have a piece of that action too, owning 45% of the scaled-down Pan Am.