GCW Consulting LLC

Elliott Seiden, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, joined GCW Consulting in June 2001. Elliott specializes in alliance and competition analysis, route planning and governmental counseling and advocacy. Before joining GCW, Elliott spent ten years at Northwest Airlines where, as Vice President, Law & Government Affairs, he was responsible for designing and executing for that airline all regulatory, aeropolitical, antitrust and congressional relations programs.

Since joining GCW, among other projects, Elliott has assisted clients in their efforts to oppose the AA/BA antitrust immunity alliance; route case proceedings before the U.S. Department of Transportation; an airport vendor in its efforts to change its compensation formula; a nuclear generation company in its efforts to improve its security profile; a U.S. carrier in its efforts to revise the financing formula for reliever airports at one of its hubs; a U.S. international air carrier in its effort to improve its facilities profile at a foreign airport; and as an attorney and strategic advisor to a domestic air cargo Aircraft, Crew, Maintenance and Insurance (ACMI) provider.

While at Northwest, Elliott conceived and secured approval for the historic Northwest-KLM antitrust immunity alliance, the first such alliance in the world. He also successfully secured approval for the domestic alliance between Northwest and Continental. Elliott has been a frequent witness before congressional committees considering antitrust, airline alliance, competition, and consumer protection issues affecting domestic and international aviation. He was Chairman of the Air Transport Association's Federal Affairs Committee in 2000 and also was Chairman of the network carriers' successful effort in 1997 to introduce a user fee component into the domestic airline ticket tax.

Before joining Northwest, Elliott held a similar position at Continental Airlines, and before that, he held a variety of positions in the federal government. As Chief of the Transportation, Energy and Agriculture Section of the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice (1978 to 1985), Elliott advised the Assistant Attorney General on all airline competition and regulatory matters, including deregulation legislation, air services agreements with foreign governments, mergers/consolidations, and civil and criminal antitrust violations. He supervised the so-called "Laker" grand jury investigation into price fixing across the Atlantic, the American/Crandall attempted monopolization case, and the investigation and rule-making submission regarding anti-competitive practices by the dominant CRS systems.

Elliott graduated from NYU Law School in 1970, where he was an Editor of the Law Review, and NYU University College in 1967, magna cum laude. Elliott is admitted to practice law before the New York State Bar, the District of Columbia Bar, and the Bar of the United States Supreme Court.

Speaking Topics: Elliott comments regularly on aviation law, competition and regulatory issues, alliances and anti-trust matters, and government relations. He can be reached at GCW’s Arlington office at elliottseiden@gcwconsulting.com or 703-522-0967.

Elliott lives in Bethesda with his wife Cindy. His sons Dan and Steve are lawyers in Washington, DC. His stepdaughter Katie attends St. Mary’s College of Maryland.

Elliott spends his leisure time bicycling along the C&O canal with the family, playing tennis (primarily with his sons who have shown a bottomless patience for his unforced errors), and reading history. His favorite authors are Michael and Jeff Shaara, authors of the Civil War trilogy Killer Angels, Gods and Generals and The Last Full Measure, and David McCullough. His favorite musicians are Frank Sinatra, Emmy Lou Harris and Delbert McClinton.