United Airlines

US Airways became the latest airline to lower its estimated quarterly earnings yesterday, reacting to modest ticket sales that have prompted several major air carriers to scale back growth and reduce fares as much as 25 percent.In a letter to analysts and investors, the Arlington, Va.-based airline estimated second-quarter profit of $1.80 to $1.85 a share, down from an earlier estimate of $2.15 a share. It attributed the drop to "softer than anticipated" traffic in May and unexpected expenses.

Major portions of Baltimore-Washington International Airport were closed yesterday morning when an unattended car parked in front of the terminal caused a bomb scare that delayed flights, created widespread confusion and tied up traffic for several hours.Hundreds of passengers were cleared from piers A and B in the terminal just before 7 a.m. after a state police dog alerted officers four times to the scent of explosives in the trunk of a gold-colored Ford, police said. A subsequent check by a bomb robot found packages but no explosives in the car.The car's driver, Leslie Hoffman of Pennsylvania, who was delivering packages for a Pennsylvania company, was questioned by officials from the state fire marshal's office and FBI agents.

CHICAGO -- Delta Air Lines Inc. probably will seek an alliance with United Airlines that will let the airlines sell seats on each other's U.S. flights as they attempt to counter a major rival partnership, a report by United pilots said yesterday.Delta, the third largest U.S. airline, stands to lose the most business of any airline to the pending alliance of Northwest Airlines Corp. and Continental Airlines Inc. and "may attempt to initiate some activity in order to protect its position," said the report.

He flew thousands of miles in the jet cockpits of major airlines.He bantered with pilots about company rules, the latest equipment and retirement investments.But the lanky, sandy-haired man in the United Airlines uniform who claimed to be a pilot was an impostor, Montgomery County prosecutors say -- a con artist who talked his way into one of the most secure places in the country, and talked real pilots and others out of their money.Shykind, 31, of Bethesda, is charged with theft and fraud for allegedly bilking 14 people -- airline employees and friends -- of $30,700 over a three-year period that ended in May 1996.

On a crowded flight from Chicago to Las Vegas last year, Gail Scott, an America West Airlines flight attendant, was punched and pushed to the floor by a female passenger who became irate when told there were no extra sandwiches. While the passenger was sentenced to two years' probation and 200 hours of community service, Scott, an 11-year veteran of the once-friendly skies, still carries psychological scars."It's gotten so you're almost afraid to ask passengers to raise their seat backs, or not smoke in the lavatories, for fear of what might happen," Scott said.

In a first move to put his own team in place, USAir Chairman Stephen M. Wolf has named a 42-year-old Air France executive as the airline's new president and a former United Airlines official to another top post.The Arlington, Va.-based company announced yesterday that Rakesh Gangwal, executive vice president for planning and development at Air France, will become USAir's president on Feb. 19. He will succeed Frank L. Salizzoni, who has announced plans to retire.In addition, USAir said that Lawrence M. Nagin, 54, will become executive vice president-corporate affairs and general counsel, succeeding James T. Lloyd, effective today.

ARLINGTON, Va. -- USAir is the wrong size and must find a way to grow, Stephen M. Wolf said yesterday during his first annual meeting as the airline's chairman and chief executive officer."

Once upon a time, possession of an E-ticket meant you were headed for one of the best rides at Disneyland. Then Disney abandoned those old ticket books, and now an E-ticket is likely to mean a commuter flight to a major U.S. city. And soon it may mean any flight anywhere -- without an actual ticket in hand.Electronic ticketing, also known as "E-ticketing" (on Continental and United airlines) and "ticketless travel" (on American and Southwest), has overwhelmed early skepticism among carriers and spread throughout the U.S. airline industry.

USAir's stock price fell 24 percent yesterday, one day after United Airlines said it had decided not to pursue a takeover of the Arlington, Va.-based carrier.The airline's shares dropped $3.75 to $11.625, or $1 a share lower than they had been trading Oct. 3 just after the two airlines announced they were negotiating.United announced its decision not to acquire USAir after the stock market closed on Monday. United's shares rose $2.375 to $185 yesterday, continuing the upward trend that began in early October, when the Chicago-based carrier was trading at $166.

ARLINGTON, Va. -- With a takeover by United Airlines ruled out, USAir Group Inc. assured its stockholders yesterday that it can survive on its own and that it won't break off portions, such as its lucrative East Coast routes, to be sold piecemeal."

FDIC adds new fee system to replenish insurance fund WASHINGTON - Federal regulators on Friday adopted a new system of special fees paid by U.S. financial institutions that will shift more of the burden to bigger banks to help replenish the deposit insurance fund. The move by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. cut by about two-thirds the amount of special fees to be levied on banks and thrifts. It followed protests by small and community banks against a plan adopted in February that charged premiums based on the amount of deposits.

I recently traveled round trip from Los Angeles International Airport to Washington, D.C., on United Airlines. United told me I could print my boarding pass and pay the baggage fee online. I did that, but as I was making my selection, I had to opt out of several costly offers. When I returned from Washington, I asked the hotel concierge to print the boarding pass and pay the baggage fee. When I got home, I noticed that one of the pages the concierge printed was an acceptance of a $137 charge for United's Award Accelerator, which increases the value of flier miles.

CHICAGO - United Airlines' stock fell more than 75 percent yesteday morning after a nearly 6-year-old Chicago Tribune news report was distributed via a market information site operated by Bloomberg L.P. The stock, which had closed Friday at $12.30 a share, hit a low of $3 a share before the confusion was cleared up. The stock closed at $10.92, down $1.38 for the day. After being alerted to the issue yesterday morning, the Chicago Tribune removed the...

Get ready for a wave of annoying airline rules requiring you to stay at your destination a minimum number of days or over a Saturday night - if you want the cheapest tickets. The move is an effort to force business travelers, who usually need the most flexibility and want to be home on the weekends, to pay more for their flights. Airlines have increased restrictions on cheap fares by raising overnight requirements, increasing what had commonly been only a one-night stay requirement to two and three nights.

Southwest Airlines Co., the only big U.S. carrier that's still profitable, might expand its fleet next year as competitors shrink operations to blunt surging fuel bills. The largest low-fare airline might keep as many as 10 older planes set to be retired this year and then add 14 new jets next year, Chief Executive Officer Gary C. Kelly said in an interview. As United Airlines and others prepare to pare flying in the fourth quarter, Southwest has delayed deciding on next year's expansion, he said.

Talks between United Airlines and US Airways appear to have fallen apart, marking the second time in a month that United has failed to reach a deal with a rival airline and putting the future of industry consolidation in question, people with knowledge of the discussions said last night. United's board and its chief executive, Glenn F. Tilton, raised questions about the arrangement in the past few days, according to three people who were briefed on the decision-making but spoke on condition of anonymity There has been little to no contact between United Airlines and US Airways in recent days, and the internal teams of senior executives at both companies, as well as external bankers and lawyers assigned to the project, have put it on "permanent hold," one person involved in the talks said.

Walter A. Truax, a retired United Airlines manager and longtime resident of Severna Park, died of respiratory failure Friday. He was 78. He was a member of the Olde Severna Park Improvement Association for more than four decades and served on the organization's board for many years, including three years as president, according to his family. In 1980, his friends and neighbors nominated him for Man of the Year, an award he received at the annual Greater Severna Park Community Awards Ceremony.

United Airlines will begin charging some passengers $50 to check a second piece of luggage on domestic round-trip flights, becoming the first big carrier to impose a fee for a service that has long been included in the price of a ticket. As of late yesterday, no other major carrier had followed United, but some analysts said that if the move didn't generate significant resistance from consumers, the traditional two-free-bags rule was likely to go the way of other services such as free meals and pillows.

CHICAGO -- After years of heavy losses, U.S. airlines are poised for a big rebound, driven by strong interest in travel and falling oil prices. American Airlines and Continental Airlines have reported an annual profit for the first time in years, indicating that air carriers finally have emerged from the turbulence that followed the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks,. United Airlines, which flirted with liquidation during its three-year bankruptcy, is expected to show a profit for the first year since 2000 when it reports 2006 earnings today.

DETROIT -- Four of the nation's largest airlines are turning to the Internet in an effort to gain public support as they fight for new, lucrative flights to China. And they're getting a big response. Northwest Airlines, Continental Airlines, United Airlines and American Airlines used e-mail to appeal to their frequent fliers to sign online petitions to support their case. The carriers are competing for one route that the United States and Chinese governments agreed to add. The airlines collected more than 100,000 signatures and letters each in Internet petitions that they intend to submit to the U.S. Department of Transportation.