
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, May 17, 1990                   TAG: 9005170191
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: B-9   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER MUNICIPAL WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

N.Y., PITTSBURGH FLIGHTS IN JEOPARDY, USAIR SAYS

USAir's early morning flights from Roanoke to Pittsburgh and New York's La Guardia Airport are not attracting as many passengers as the airline had hoped.

The Pittsburgh flight has been averaging 29 passengers and the La Guardia flight 20.

The Roanoke Regional Airport Commission was told Wednesday that the flights could be in jeopardy.

Jerry Caudill, USAir's station manager in Roanoke, said more passengers are needed on both flights.

"The name of the game is profitability and if we don't have the passengers, they may take the planes and put them on more profitable routes," Caudill said.

To continue the flights, Caudill said, the number of passengers to Pittsburgh needs to be doubled and the number of passengers on the La Guardia flight needs to tripled.

The non-stop flights were instituted in February to upgrade service for Roanoke, particularly for business people.

The Pittsburgh flight leaves at 7 a.m. and the La Guardia flight at 7:15 a.m.

Caudill said the airline has instituted a $158 promotional round-trip fare to La Guardia to help attract more passengers.

He said the flights will be retained for the immediate future, but the airline probably would eliminate them at some point if more people don't use them.

"I'm not sure why people are not using the flights. We have got the revenue base here to support them if people use them," he said.

Robert Herbert, commission chairman, said many businesses in outlying areas of Western Virginia depend on the flights.

Caudill also told the commission that the problems created by the merger of USAir and Piedmont Airlines are "finally smoothing out" and the airline's performance has improved dramatically.

Caudill said the airline's record in completing flights on time in the past two months was the best ever in USAir's and Piedmont's history.

At the Roanoke Airport, he said 98.6 percent of USAir flights arrived on time in April.

He said that system-wide, USAir completed more than 90 percent of its flights on time in March and April.

by CNB