US Airways restores VIP service after call from Kennedy WASHINGTON (AP) =97 US Airways restored a special service for VIP travelers= =20 nearly two weeks after it was cut following a call from Sen. Edward=20 Kennedy, D-Mass., a regular on the airline's Washington-Boston shuttle.=20 Those picked for the airline's Executive Services program at Reagan=20 National Airport are provided with a private waiting room, away from=20 crowds. Kennedy is among those who have used the service. Stephanie Cutter,= =20 Kennedy's spokeswoman, said Kennedy didn't intervene to save his perk but=20 in order to help two US Airways employees who were going to lose their=20 jobs. The two managers run the Executive Services program, according to the= =20 airline Kennedy has known the women for years, Cutter said. He intervened=20 after staffers received calls from the women, wondering if the senator=20 could recommend them for other jobs within the company, she said. "To him they were the face of US Air," Cutter said. "He thought US Air=20 should try to find another place in the company for them because they were= =20 very hardworking and dedicated." She added, "It was never anybody's=20 intention to do anything about Executive Services." On Oct. 30, the day after the VIP service was canceled, Kennedy placed a=20 call to David N. Siegel, US Airways president and chief executive. The=20 service was restored on Nov. 12. Chris Chiames, a US Airways vice=20 president, said, "Calls from anyone in particular had nothing to do with=20 the decision" to restore the service. The program was wrongly eliminated as= =20 part of broader management layoffs designed to cut costs before company=20 officials had a chance to fully review the decision, he said. "Somebody pulled the trigger prematurely," Chiames said. Arlington,=20 Va.-based US Airways filed for bankruptcy in August. It expects to emerge=20 from bankruptcy early next year and has sought to cut costs, including by=20 extracting concessions from labor unions aimed at saving $840 million=20 annually. US Airways will not say how people are picked for its VIP=20 service. Other airlines provide similar services for travelers who are=20 famous or must travel with security details. Other perks afforded=20 government officials, including members of Congress and the U.S. Supreme=20 Court, include free, close-in parking at National and at Dulles=20 International Airport in northern Virginia. 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: (chgdev) http://www.chagdev.com/ (Chaguaramas Development Authority) courtesy of Roj Trinbago Website & TnT Web Directory Roj's Trinbago Website: http://www.tntisland.com TnT Web Directory: http://search.co.tt *********************************************************