Leading U.S. carriers are now facing a growing and real threat. The challenge is being thrown by carriers based in the Middle East and Asia. This is making the American carriers jittery as they come to terms with the new challenges. America’s leading airlines US Airways and American Airlines, which have merged finally forming the largest airline in the world, are finding it tough and emerge winners in the face of global competition.

Dough Parker, Chief Executive of American Airlines, recently told mediapersons during an interview that the threat is real. The fact cannot be discounted that it’s a global business and there’s pertinent need to compete globally. He said that the two airlines, which have now merged and will now function under American Airlines Group, are fully aware of this fact and simply can’t turn blind eye to any global threat. Parker however said that there should be a level of playing field and his company cannot be asked or pressurized to compete on different terms. Parker said that the major challenge is coming from carriers mostly based in the Middle East, India, Korea, Turkey and elsewhere.

American Airlines Group is not the only one to face the heat. Even another leading carrier Delta Air Lines is finding the going tough. Delta Air Lines is battling it out in an Italian court asking it to rein in new flights between New York and Milan that was launched by Emirates Airline in October this year. Delta Air Lines has even gone to the extent of seeking a stop on billions of dollars lending by a U.S. bank to foreign airlines at below-market rates. One suit has already been dismissed by the U.S. Court of Appeals, while a federal court in Washington is yet to consider a pending trial.