Midway May Fly Again By January POSTED: 1:19 p.m. EST December 4, 2002 DURHAM -- Midway Airlines may take off again by January as a feeder airline for US Airways Express, according to documents filed in federal bankruptcy court. US Airways said in the documents filed Monday that after six months of negotiations, it has "substantially reached an agreement in principle" for Midway to become its regional jet partner. The deal is subject to approval by the bankruptcy courts and the companies' boards of directors. Midway filed a motion Tuesday for the agreement to be approved by U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge A. Thomas Small. Under the service agreement, Midway must have at least one jet in service by Jan. 1 with up to 18 jets in the air under the banner of US Airways Express by the end of the second quarter of 2003. US Airways will sell tickets on flights operated by Midway and will provide reservation, ground support and other services for the regional jet service. The planes will fly to Boston, New York and Washington, D.C., and US Airways has the option to add additional routes and up to 48 additional planes. Midway will be allowed to display signs on the interior and exterior of aircraft identifying it as the operator of the flight, according to the filing. US Airways will pay Midway for two years of service up front, then begin monthly payments for the remainder of the 10-year service agreement. Details of US Airways' payments to Midway were blacked out in the bankruptcy filings. The plan is key to the reorganizations of both Midway Airlines and US Airways. "US Airways believes that it could not replicate the timing of this additional regional jet service, which is a critical component of its business plan, within its own affiliates during the same time period," the company wrote in its bankruptcy filing. Midway, which filed for bankruptcy, signed on with US Airways in July as its last chance for survival and subsequently suspended flight operations. At that time, Midway laid off most of its remaining staff, which was down to several hundred from 2,500 last summer. Officials said in July that some of the pilots, flight attendants and mechanics will get their jobs back when the airline returns to the air. The agreement stipulates that half of the pilot positions must be reserved for furloughed US Airways pilots. Midway had hoped to take off again in mid-October, but the deadline was pushed back several times as the local carrier worked to meet conditions for the agreement. _________________________________________________________________ Add photos to your e-mail with MSN 8. Get 2 months FREE*. http://join.msn.com/?page=features/featuredemail