Once United was the largest airline in the free world. In 2003 the Skies were not friendly. United in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, was still in the worst shape of all the carriers. It continued to prune its route map and frequencies. During this turbulent time, it launched its own LCC, Ted. Ted was intended to compete against Jet Blue, Southwest, and especially Frontier which had carved a strong niche at UA's Denver hub. United never really had much of a recovery before the Oil Shock and recession of 2008. During the period, UA held merger talks with Continental and USAirways. UA has a weak balance sheet, low morale, huge overhead, and not the most overly attractive route structure (The IAD and DEN hubs are all contested by LCCs, it faces American in Chicago, San Francisco is weather prone, and it is weak in Europe and Latin America). Airlines are understandably nervous at the prospect of merging with United.