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Continental Counters At LAX Closing For United Merger

LOS ANGELES (CBS) — Passengers scheduled on Continental flights out of LAX this weekend, shouldn't bother looking for the airline's signs.

When the merger between United and Continental airlines becomes final Saturday, passengers will no longer be able to check in to a Continental ticketing gate or get on a plane with the company's name on it.

Continental signs inside LAX will come down overnight.

"As far as the customer experience is concerned, this is the final step in merging Continental with United," United spokesman Rahsaan Johnson said.

Passengers carrying tickets for Continental flights will look for the same flight numbers on United in Terminal 7.

Signs around LAX were changed this week to reflect the merged airline's location, Los Angeles World Airports spokesman Marshall Lowe said.

Passengers with Continental tickets will be able to check in at United ticketing kiosks and baggage counters.

The merger, which closed in 2010, became official in November when the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration granted a Single Operating Certificate, giving the airlines the authority to operate as one entity.

Additional personnel will be posted at LAX and airports around the country to assist customers.

The airline's online and phone reservation systems are scheduled for an outage of three or four hours, beginning at 11 p.m. Friday to load the new airline's web operation.

(©2012 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)

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