Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, December 30, 1994 TAG: 9412300104
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A-7 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: CHARLOTTE, N.C. LENGTH: Medium
Concerns over USAir's financial stability have officials at Charlotte/Douglas International Airport preparing for the worst.
Arlington, Va.-based USAir now flies more than 90 percent of all passengers into and out of its hub at North Carolina's largest city.
Contingency plans include informal talks with domestic and foreign airlines that could start or expand service to Charlotte/Douglas International Airport. Officials also are working to boost cargo traffic. And a committee of the Charlotte City Council will discuss a master plan for the airport community in January.
``The thought of USAir folding is frightening,'' said Lynn Wheeler, chairman of the council's economic-development committee. ``We are the city we are today because USAir has its hub here.''
At Roanoke Regional Airport, USAir accounts for 26 of the 51 daily departures and provides 1,387 daily-departure passenger seats, or 65 percent of the total seats, according to the Roanoke Regional Airport Commission.
The airline operates six flights daily, five of them jet service, between Roanoke and Charlotte. It also offers daily flights connecting Roanoke with USAir hubs at Baltimore and Pittsburgh and provides daily service to New York, Norfolk, Richmond and Washington.
USAir has a $2.8 billion debt and is still reeling from two major crashes this year. But the airline is showing some signs of stability.
A cost-cutting agreement with its pilots' union is expected in the new year, a sign USAir finally may be getting a handle on costs. The holidays are the busiest travel time, which should improve the carrier's bottom line.
``We have no plans for any service cutbacks in the Charlotte area,'' said USAir spokesman Richard Weintraub, whose company employs 7,100-plus in Charlotte. ``We plan to be ever more a part of Charlotte's economy, because we plan to be there for a long time to come.''
But Charlotte's leaders aren't expected to rely on assurances from a troubled airline responsible for two-thirds - $30 million - of the airport's annual revenue. USAir handles 94 percent of the traffic at Charlotte/Douglas. USAir has said it wants to sell two-thirds of its fleet of Boeing 767s, the transatlantic planes that fly to London and Frankfurt. That would open the door for other airlines to take over those routes. Carroll Gray, Charlotte Chamber president, said flights to Paris and Amsterdam also are possible.
``We've had contact with a couple of international carriers about this market within the last 90 days,'' he said. ``They're interested, but not serious at this point.''
Gray wouldn't say who the chamber has talked to. Others, however, say executives at Lufthansa and Alitalia have been contacted.
Other carriers also have been queried about replacing some of USAir's flights if the airline scales back its service.
``United [Airlines] might be a possibility. They don't have a Southern hub,'' said Carroll Gray, Charlotte Chamber president. ``But this chamber has not contacted anyone, formally or informally. Our position is that we're behind USAir.''
Staff writer Greg Edwards contributed to this story.
by CNB