US Airways emerges lean, mean, punctual machine By Barbara De Lollis, USA TODAY Don't expect splashy advertising, new frequent-flier promotions or other=20 big changes at US Airways now that it has emerged from bankruptcy court,=20 aviation experts say. Passengers who have flown the airline recently will=20 see little immediate change in the US Airways that came out of bankruptcy=20 reorganization Monday. While managers overhauled the balance sheet, flight= =20 schedule, fleet and payroll the past seven months, US Airways' pilots,=20 flight attendants, ticket agents and baggage handlers got people where they= =20 needed to go =97 often, faster and with fewer passenger complaints. Some=20 months, the airline grabbed top honors in the government's customer service= =20 rankings. Industry experts expect that the airline will keep trimming costs to meet=20 its financial projections, which could affect passenger services. Even=20 after cutting costs by nearly $2 billion a year, US Airways is losing=20 money, and 2003 is shaping up to be worse than expected. Executives had=20 projected net income of $127 million for 2004, but now that looks=20 uncertain. War is driving down travel demand, the economy remains shaky,=20 and profitable low-cost carriers are cranking up the competition. "They're= =20 coming out of bankruptcy in a very difficult time," says airline analyst=20 Ray Neidl at Blaylock & Partners. Neidl thinks US Airways should have=20 shaved more off its costs to better compete with discount airlines such as= =20 Southwest and JetBlue. In a sign of what lies ahead, low-fare ATA on Monday= =20 announced it will launch flights between Pittsburgh, a US Airways' hub, and= =20 Chicago Midway in June. ATA says it will offer introductory round-trip=20 fares of $138 that don't have advance purchase or Saturday-night stay=20 requirements. Fares were much higher in years past, says Bob Thompson,=20 manager at Ambassador Travel in Pittsburgh. Here's a look at what's ahead: =95 Fares. Don't expect big fare sales in the near future, especially as= long=20 as the war lasts. "I think people have realized that that's what helped get= =20 them where they are," says Terry Trippler, air traveler advocate for=20 cheapseats.com. Though US Airways' goal isn't to be a low-fare carrier, it's behaving like= =20 one in some of its top markets. In Pittsburgh, where US Airways is the=20 predominant carrier, it's matching AirTran's $188 round-trip fare on=20 non-stop flights to Orlando and America West's $241 round-trip fare on=20 non-stops to Phoenix. Industry analysts say US Airways' ability to raise=20 average fares is key to its long-term success. =95 International flying. It added five airports in the Caribbean while in= =20 Chapter 11, and in May, US Airways will start service to Shannon and=20 Dublin, Ireland. It's seeking permission to fly to Mexico City this fall. A= =20 recent deal with United Airlines also gives US Airways customers connecting= =20 flights across United's sprawling international route system and includes a= =20 tie-in to United's MileagePlus frequent-flier program. US Airways continues= =20 to make some changes to its routes but still serves 199 airports, five=20 fewer than it did before seeking bankruptcy protection. It will eliminate=20 US Airways Express service in Kalamazoo, Mich., Baton Rouge and Madison,=20 Wis., in coming weeks. =95 Schedule changes. US Airways has been slashing its schedule since the=20 Sept. 11 attacks, and most of the changes are in place now. But war is=20 leading to another 4% cutback in April. =95 Fleet. US Airways expects to double the number of 50- to 76-seat= regional=20 jets flown by its regional airlines to about 140 this year, although the=20 specific routes they will fly haven't been decided, an airline spokesman=20 says. That will be an improvement in some markets, where the small jets=20 will replace turboprops that are less popular with customers. =95 Staffing levels. The airline reduced flight attendant staffing on some= =20 flights to the minimum required by the Federal Aviation Administration.=20 Those requirements vary depending on the size of the plane, but flight=20 attendants have concerns about the implications for safety and service. On= =20 a 757, for instance, the number of required flight attendants went from six= =20 to four, says Jeff Zack, spokesman for the attendants' union. "Once you=20 start reducing service significantly on US Airways, whose bread-and-butter= =20 is business passengers primarily to business markets, then you start to=20 lose your advantage over the no-frills carriers," he says. =95 Attention to passenger service. Employee morale suffered the past two=20 years during multiple rounds of furloughs and pay cuts, but fewer flights=20 imposed by US Airways' restructuring actually led to improved performance=20 in on-time flights, fewer mishandled bags and fewer complaints. Emergence=20 should help improve morale, says Hal Rosenbluth, CEO of Rosenbluth=20 International travel management company. A noticeable drop in customer=20 service, Neidl says, could spell disaster for the airline. *************************************************** The owner of Roger's Trinbago Site/TnTisland.com Roj (Roger James) escape email mailto:ejames@xxxxxxxxx Trinbago site: www.tntisland.com Carib Brass Ctn site www.tntisland.com/caribbeanbrassconnection/ Steel Expressions www.mts.net/~ejames/se/ Site of the Week:http://www.ttsailing.org/ TnT Webdirectory: http://search.co.tt *********************************************************