"US Airways' hubs 'vulnerable'"

Monday, July 26, 2004

US Airways' hubs 'vulnerable'
The Philadelphia (PA) Business Journal


Philadelphia International Airport, as well as US Airways' two other
hubs in Pittsburgh and Charlotte, N.C., are "particularly vulnerable" to
the airline's weak financial condition, according to a recent report by
Standard & Poor's. 
  
The report was published two days after US Airways announced it will
scale back flights out of Pittsburgh International Airport by more than
35 percent. The three airports are US Airway's three main "hub"
airports. 

US Airways, which is based in Arlington, Va., emerged from Chapter 11
bankruptcy protection last year, but it has been looking for ways to cut
costs and restructure its operations to better compete against low-cost
airlines like Southwest Airlines of Dallas. 

Philadelphia, which has 409 flights out each day, is not as dependent
upon US Airways as the other two airports. US Airways has a 68 percent
market share in Philadelphia, while it has a 90 percent market share in
Charlotte and an 82 percent market share in Pittsburgh. 

The S&P report said that Philadelphia International "will benefit" from
Southwest's entrance into the market in May, but that the airport "is
still exposed somewhat to reductions by US Airways that could occur as
the airline attempts to restructure itself to compete better against
low-cost carriers."


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