Grupo Mexicana, Mexico's second-largest airline, offered 2.17 billion pesos ($199 million) for state-controlled Consorcio Aeromexico SA to top rival bidders.
Chairman Gaston Azcarraga, whose hotel chain Grupo Posadas SA bought Mexicana from the government in 2005, said uniting Mexico's biggest airlines is the only way to make them profitable and fend off competition from domestic startups.
