'87 Case Changed Courts' Attitude

2 Locals Charged In Philly Bomb Threats 
Justin Seersma Of Wilkes-barre And James Alan Moore Of Hazleton Were Arrested
In Two Separate Incidents.

Thursday, January 15, 2004 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 1C 





The planned merger of Allegheny and Piedmont commuter airlines should not
hurt the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport, the airport director
said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 US Airways on Wednesday said it plans to consolidate Allegheny with
Piedmont by the end of March. Piedmont serves the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton
International Airport under the US Airways Express banner. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; ``We don't see any impact at all here,'' said Barry Centini, airport
director. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 US Airways Express operates a combined 11 round-trip flights daily to US
Airways' hubs in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Centini added it's his understanding Piedmont will assume Allegheny's
operations in a seamless transition of services. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The preferred path is to merge the two airlines that each operate 37-seat
de Havilland Dash-8 turboprop aircraft, US Airways said in a press release. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The job losses associated with the plan are uncertain. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Allegheny, based in Middletown, Pa., near Harrisburg, employs 1,421
workers. It serves 38 cities, mostly in the mid-Atlantic region. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Salisbury, Md.-based Piedmont has 2,090 employees. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 US Airways threatened it may have to liquidate Allegheny's operations
entirely if it cannot reach agreement with its unions on a consolidation plan.
US Airways management met Wednesday with labor groups to discuss its plan;
union officials could not immediately be reached for comment. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``Turboprop aircraft will still have a role in our network, but it is
inefficient to have two wholly owned Dash-8 operators with duplicative
overhead functions for a shrinking part of the company,'' said Bruce Ashby,
president of US Airways Express. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 US Airways spokesman David Castelveter said the two airlines operate in
many of the same cities, including the airline's hubs in Philadelphia and
Pittsburgh, but that their route networks have little overlap. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``Our intention would be not to significantly shrink the size of the
combined operation,'' he said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 In the long run, though, US Airways plans to reduce its reliance on
turboprop planes in favor of regional jets, which are preferred by travelers. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Arlington-based US Airways, which employs 28,000, emerged from bankruptcy
last year with the help of a $1 billion federally guaranteed loan. That money
was supposed to bankroll its plan to expand use of regional jets, but the
airline has struggled to meet its revenue projections under increased
competition from low-fare airlines and continued weakness in high-yield
business travel. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 US Airways shares fell 18 cents to close at $5.12 on the Nasdaq Stock
Market. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Allegheny began operations in 1946 as Reading Aviation Services and began
operating commuter flights for USAir since 1973. It was purchased by USAir
Group in 1986. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Associated Press contributed to this report. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Airline Merger No Area Problem Local Airport's Piedmont Service Likely Unaffected, Official Says Staff And Wire Reports