This article from NYTimes.com has been sent to you by psa188@xxxxxxxxx /-------------------- advertisement -----------------------\ Explore more of Starbucks at Starbucks.com. http://www.starbucks.com/default.asp?ci=1015 \----------------------------------------------------------/ Travelers Have Enough Worries; Airline Woes Hardly Faze Them April 26, 2003 By DONNA ROSATO When Rick Kupcunas heard rumors a few weeks ago that American Airlines might file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, the Dallas-based technology consultant cashed in 150,000 of his frequent-flier miles to get four tickets for a family vacation to the West Coast. "I'd rather spend them than lose them," said Mr. Kupcunas, a senior manager at Deloitte & Touche who flies 175,000 miles a year, mostly on American, which is owned by the AMR Corporation. But Mr. Kupcunas has little to fear. American Airlines seems to have ducked the threat of an immediate trip to bankruptcy court, and even had American filed, his miles would have been safe. Indeed, the experience of travelers lately is little influenced by airline bankruptcies and much more by other factors, from the weak economy and fears of terrorism to severe acute respiratory syndrome and the recent war with Iraq. With the steep downturn in travel because of those factors, airlines have slashed schedules, leaving people who do want to fly with fewer options. Popular morning and afternoon flights are often packed. But demand has fallen even faster than the supply, so fares over all are dropping, and it is sometimes easier for frequent fliers to upgrade to better seats. Moreover, with fewer planes in the sky, the whole air travel system is working better, according to government statistics: Airlines are posting better on-time performance and losing fewer bags. "The airlines have made capacity cuts because of SARS and the war with Iraq, but I don't think a bankruptcy filing by American would result in a substantial reduction in service," said Mo Garfinkle, chief executive of GCW Consulting, an international aviation consulting firm. In fact, some carriers are restoring capacity that they cut just before the war with Iraq started in March. On Thursday, Delta Air Lines announced that in June, it would restore most of the domestic and international service it suspended in April and May. That will be a relief to frustrated fliers on Delta's East Coast shuttle. At LaGuardia Airport yesterday afternoon, dozens of travelers were unable to get on overbooked shuttle flights. John Kennedy, a Delta spokesman, said Delta hurried to add several flights to cope with the overflow. After bankruptcy filings last year by United Airlines, which is owned by the UAL Corporation, and by US Airways, travelers seem barely to blink at the prospect these days, airline experts say. "The stigma of bankruptcy doesn't exist with the airline industry," said Hal Rosenbluth, the chief executive of Rosenbluth International, a corporate travel agency. Like United, which remains in bankruptcy court, and US Airways, which has completed its reorganization, American has been ratcheting back its operations for months. "American has already done a substantial downsizing in terms of grounding aircraft and cutting back schedules," said Dan Kasper, managing director at LECG, an economic and financial consulting firm that specializes in aviation. One challenge for Gerard J. Arpey, the newly promoted chief executive of American, will be inspiring a work force facing pay cuts and tougher work rules - and whose anger helped drive his predecessor, Donald J. Carty, out of the job on Thursday. Some heart, perhaps, can be taken from the performance of United. With workers under similar strains, customer satisfaction measures at United actually have been improving. In part, airlines are performing better because so many travelers have been grounded. Half-full flights also mean it is easier for fliers to move up to first-class and business-class seats. Steve Klein, a training consultant in Dallas who flies about 50,000 miles a year on American, said that he had been frustrated by having fewer flights to choose from. But he was happy when he was upgraded on a flight from Dallas to St. Louis earlier this week. "There were a few empty seats in first class," he said. With the war over and the summer travel season looming, airlines are hoping that more travelers will take to the skies. While international travel remains weak because of SARS and lingering fears about terrorism, domestic travel is showing some signs of picking up, some travel companies said. At Rosenbluth, domestic travel bookings during the last four weeks were 15 percent higher than the month before. "Travel has picked up domestically," Mr. Rosenbluth said. "Corporations are starting to send people out again." http://www.nytimes.com/2003/04/26/business/26CONS.html?ex=1052383276&ei=1&en=93b5d39d0b3b5fc4 HOW TO ADVERTISE --------------------------------- For information on advertising in e-mail newsletters or other creative advertising opportunities with The New York Times on the Web, please contact onlinesales@xxxxxxxxxxx or visit our online media kit at http://www.nytimes.com/adinfo For general information about NYTimes.com, write to help@xxxxxxxxxxxx Copyright 2003 The New York Times Company