United Airlines will battle for Denver as exec once again targets a low-cost upstart

The airline industry's next top-of-the-card battle will likely break out next quarter in Denver, when Frontier Airlines will seek to dramatically expand and United Continental will try to make that difficult. It features two well-known industry veterans, United president Scott Kirby and Frontier CE Barry Biffle. Both worked at US Airways, one before the bankruptcies and one afterward. They have battled before, although not directly. Now, both Biffle and Kirby "have moved to new teams and different hubs, but otherwise they've laced it up and are about to duke it out," a former airline executive said. "They even used similar phrases, each talking about 'natural share' or some variant. This is good for consumers, not sure about shareholders." <br/>