UAL Buyout Group Trying to Save Deal

CHICAGO â€”  The group trying to buy UAL Corp., the parent of United Airlines, said Sunday it is determined to salvage its leveraged buyout of the carrier but did not know when a new proposal would be unveiled nor what its value would be.

“Everyone is talking over the weekend,� said Hank Krakowski, a spokesman for Airline Acquisition Corp., the buyout group.

“We’re still going to complete the deal, regardless of the timetable--and the markets may dictate that timetable,� he said.

Wall Street plunged to its second-biggest loss ever Friday, partly because the takeover deal fell apart and dragged many stock prices down with it.

UAL Corp., which was thought to be putting the finishing touches on the $6.75 billion takeover, instead announced that it did not have the funds to go ahead with the deal.

Krakowski, asked if the group would unveil a restructured deal as early as Monday, said he did not know.

He said financial advisers at First Boston Corp. and Lazard Freres huddled over the weekend to restructure the deal for United Airlines, the nation’s second largest carrier.

The acquisition group is led by United Airlines’ pilots and key management members, and joined by British Airways PLC.

Meanwhile, financier Marvin Davis has not yet confirmed whether he is still interested in the airline. Davis had said he would be willing to pay $300 a share if the Airline Acquisitions agreement fell apart.

Krakowski would not comment on market reports that banks were unwilling to loan the group money because the interest rates and up-front commitment fees offered by the would-be purchasers were unattractive.