US Airways cutting 1,000 jobs, shifting flying

By JOSHUA FREED

posted: 104 DAYS 14 HOURS AGO

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MINNEAPOLIS -Struggling US Airways said Wednesday it will cut some 1,000 jobs next year, shift nearly all of its flying to its three hubs and Washington, and suspend several international routes.

The retrenching is aimed at putting its airplanes where the money is — its hubs at Philadelphia, Phoenix, and Charlotte, North Carolina, as well as Washington. US Airways said flying from its hubs has been profitable.

Once the changes are made early next year, 99 percent of its flying will be to or from those cities, up from 93 percent now. It's also keeping its US Airways Shuttle between Boston, New York, and Washington, although some of the Boston flying is shifting to its smaller Embraer 190 jets.

US Airways has said its domestic flying will drop slightly next year, while international flying will rise a little.

The carrier is scaling back international flying from Philadelphia. It will suspend flights between there and London Gatwick; Birmingham, England; Milan, Italy; Shannon, Ireland; and Stockholm. It will also formally give up its government permission to fly between Philadelphia and Beijing, which it never used.

Us Airways said its first flights across the Pacific will now be on its planned route to Tokyo, beginning in 2012 "or when market conditions become favorable." The company said revenue on trans-Atlantic routes has fallen $273 million this year through September.

The Tempe, Arizona-based airline said the job cuts will happen in the first half 2010 and will include 600 passenger and ramp service workers, 200 pilots, and about 150 flight attendants. The airline will close crew bases in Las Vegas and at LaGuardia airport in New York on Jan. 31, and in Boston on May 2.

US Airways Group Inc. lost $80 million in the third quarter, and it's expected to lose money for the full year. The airline lost $2.3 billion in 2008.

2009-10-28 16:44:58