DALLAS The Teamsters dropped a bid to push aside another unio and represent about 11,000 aircraft mechanics and other workers at American Airlines.

The Teamsters said Friday they were pulling out because of a government lawsuit this week to block the merger of American Airlines and US Airways. The unio said that the lawsuit had thrown American employees in turmoil, and a representation fight between two unios wouldnt help matters.

The Teamsters had hoped to represent ground workers after American and US Airways merged, but lost on both fronts.

Last week, the Teamsters lost an election to represent 4,600 mechanics at US Airways. The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers won with 58 per cent of the vote.

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At American, the Teamsters challenged the Transport Workers unio, or TWU, to represent ground workers for the nations third-biggest airline.

TWU President James C. Little said Friday that his unio was pleased that the Teamsters realized that this raid of TWU members at American Airlines was both wasteful and divisive.

The TWU had accused the Teamsters of turning in forged worker-support cards in their bid to qualify for an election. The Teamsters unio had denied the charge and asked for two delays until late August to respond to the claims.

The machinists unio and TWU joined forces to oppose the Teamsters by agreeing to share representation of mechanics after a merger between American and US Airways.

The merger was thrown into doubt this week when the U.S. Justice Department sued to block the deal, saying it would reduce competition and cause consumers to pay higher prices for travel. The airlines have vowed to fight the lawsuit.