Let's keep things in perspective

A gloomy cloud of hand wringing, second guessing and guilt has been hovering over Pittsburgh International Airport in recent weeks, but, truth be told, much of it has been premature, misplaced or unfounded.

The crash and burn of its proposed merger with United Airlines has unleashed a barrage of difficult questions about the future prospects of US Airways.

Although its absorption by United had been portrayed as the most honorable course of action for US Airways shareholders, employees, passengers and the Pittsburgh community, it was never clear exactly how much each group would benefit from the merger.

United made many assurances about its good intentions, but like its $60 per share offer, there was never anything we could take to the bank.

Certainly these are tempestuous times in the airline industry, but that's nothing new. Somehow the Little Airline That Could has survived more than two decades of deregulation and cutthroat competition, high labor and operating costs, an aging fleet of gas-guzzling planes, crashes, stock price slumps and other perils that drove many carriers into bankruptcy. Sure, the economy is down, fuel prices are up and profits are slim, but that's true for every airline.

In the past five years, US Airways has modernized its fleet and retired many of its oldest planes. Passenger capacity has increased 25 percent on east-west long haul routes, has doubled on Caribbean routes and has soared 383 percent across the Atlantic. The airline's airport facilities have been upgraded in Philadelphia, Washington, Boston and other places. In-cabin service and on-time performance have improved. The reservation and ticketing process has been streamlined, especially with the development of USAirways.com. Despite setbacks, the airline seems to be in a strong cash position, and its reputation as a carrier of choice also appears to be improving, both across the country and across the Atlantic.

Even the cost of tickets can be a bargain, albeit for the quick, the persistent and the computer savvy. Just last week, US Airways put its winter European schedule on sale, with round-trip fares from Pittsburgh to London as low as $331. By fall, it may cost more than that to get to New York City.

While familiarity often breeds contempt, as does price gouging and highhanded treatment, there's more than the makings of a fine airline here, one that offers efficient, reliable service domestically and internationally. And this week, the airline unveiled a Plan B to take it there.

Pittsburgh-area travelers may still be subjected to the indignities of a captive marketplace. But never undervalue the benefits of having direct, nonstop access to more airports than most cities our size.

And don't forget that many observers have built entire careers predicting the end of US Airways.

Pointing fingers

The recent announcements that AirTran and Midway Airlines are curtailing or suspending flights out of Pittsburgh International also has come as a blow to airport watchers.

Local travelers and the business and travel agent communities are being blamed for not supporting these two upstarts in sufficient numbers to make their flights profitable. In both cases, the argument seems suspect.

Rather than pulling out of Pittsburgh entirely, AirTran is terminating only its three daily nonstop flights to La Guardia Airport in New York. At least for a while, it will continue to offer three daily round trips to Chicago, four to Philadelphia and three to its Atlanta hub, with connections to a wide range of other airports.

While its planes to New York may not have been flying full, we suspect that the extraordinary difficulty, expense and delays involved with flying in and out of La Guardia also played a significant role in the decision.

In 2000, La Guardia was the most congested airport in the country, and AirTran (as well as other upstart airlines) leased gate availability from other carriers who owned landing spots. Last December, in an effort to reduce that congestion, a lottery was held at La Guardia to reduce the number of new flights. Like a game of musical chairs, the airlines had to scramble to find places to park their planes, and perhaps that raised the stakes higher than AirTran was willing to pay. It continues to fly into La Guardia, but only from its Atlanta hub.

On the other hand, the prevailing economic conditions seem to have forced Midway into a tailspin, forcing it to declare bankruptcy and eliminate service to half a dozen cities in addition to Pittsburgh to stave off total collapse. Surely that can't be our fault.

So go easy on the brow beating and self-recriminations. Despite the near monopoly US Airways has in this area, the airline business remains intensely competitive overall. The loss of marginal operations is one inevitable consequence. Certainly, when considering the options presented by other increasingly behemoth carriers, US Airways deserves our continuing support.

Just as we deserve the best service and prices it can offer