Delta warns, cuts 1,500 more flight attendant jobs ATLANTA (AP) =97 Delta Air Lines expects to lose $350 million in the third= =20 quarter, about $164 million more than previously expected, company=20 officials said Friday, one day after announcing that 1,500 flight attendant= =20 jobs would be cut. The Atlanta-based airline had anticipated a $186 million= =20 loss in the July-September quarter, similar to last year's loss. The=20 third-quarter estimate includes about $200 million in one-time costs,=20 including charges for the write-down of some aircraft, temporary carrying=20 costs of grounded aircraft and surplus pilots, officials said in a filing=20 with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The warning caused Delta (DAL) shares to plummet. Trading of Delta shares=20 did not begin Friday until 10:36 a.m. ET because the SEC asked Delta to=20 issue its statement first, Delta officials said. The flight attendant cuts were a response to the ongoing slump in the=20 airline industry, company officials said. "The industry is suffering,"=20 Delta spokeswoman Peggy Estes said Friday. "So it's necessary to reduce our= =20 operating costs. We need to match the work force size to the needs of the=20 operation." Third-quarter capacity will be down 2.5% to 3% from the third=20 quarter of 2001, Delta said. Sharon Wibben, Delta's senior vice president=20 of in-flight service, told flight attendants about the cuts Thursday in a=20 teleconference. Delta has more than 16,000 flight attendants, a third of=20 whom are based at its Atlanta hub. Delta Chairman and Chief Executive Leo=20 Mullin has said more cuts could be necessary in the future. Besides last=20 year's job cuts and nearly 1,000 pilot furloughs, Delta has cut capital=20 spending, ended flights to six countries and 10 cities, and reduced service= =20 on 80 other routes. Despite a better-than-expected rebound in travel demand= =20 in the spring, traffic has continued to fall flat and average fares have=20 continued to decline, adding to the industry's losses. Delta joins other=20 major airlines also making cuts this fall, including American, which=20 recently said it will slash 7,000 jobs. The owner of Roger's Trinbago Site: Roj (Roger James) *************************************************** escape email mailto:ejames@escape.ca Trinbago site: http://www.tntisland.com CBC Website http://www.tntisland.com/caribbeanbrassconnection/ The Trinbago Site of the Week: (ReadyMix) http://www.readymix.co.tt/ (ReadyMix Cement Ltd) courtesy of Roj Trinbago Website & TnT Web Directory Roj's Trinbago Website: http://www.tntisland.com TnT Web Directory: http://search.co.tt *********************************************************