Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, December 17, 1994                   TAG: 9412190052
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: A6   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: GREG EDWARDS STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

EAGLE SETS ITS DEPARTURE

American Eagle said from its Dallas headquarters Friday that it was stopping all 34 daily flights at the North Carolina airport next week. The airline's Roanoke service includes three daily flights to Raleigh-Durham, representing about 100 passenger seats daily, or 5 percent of Roanoke's passenger traffic.

American Eagle spokeswoman Laura Hurd said ticket offices in cities affected by the action would remain open through Jan. 6 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. to handle refunds and rebookings. The office will close at 3 p.m. on Dec. 31 and Jan. 1. Passenger information also is available by phoning (800) 433-7300.

American Eagle's decision to pull out of Raleigh-Durham was precipitated by the Federal Aviation Administration's order that ATR aircraft flown by American Eagle and other airlines no longer be used in regions where icing on the wings could occur. Icing was thought to be a factor in an Oct. 31 crash near Chicago that killed 68.

American Eagle closed its Raleigh-Durham hub so it could reallocate its Saab 340 and Jetstream Super 31 planes in use there to Northern routes to replace ATRs.

American Eagle also said Thursday it was suspending its Chicago commuter flights after pilots complained they needed more training in cold-weather flying. Chicago operations are expected to resume Jan. 4 once the training is complete.

Memo: ***CORRECTION***