Us Airways

US Airways Group Inc., shrinking its fleet and cutting jobs to blunt record fuel prices, will drop flights to four cities in Oklahoma, Oregon and Florida. Service will end Sept. 3 to Oklahoma City; Medford, Ore.; and Panama City, Fla.; and service to Eugene, Ore., will end Oct. 1, spokesman Philip Gee said Friday in an e-mail. The reductions are part of the plan disclosed June 13 by Tempe, Ariz.

The pilots union for US Airways said Wednesday that the airline was pressuring pilots to carry less fuel than they believed was safe in order to save money. US Airways Capt. James Ray, a spokesman for the US Airline Pilots Assn., which represents the airline's 5,200 pilots, said eight senior pilots and the union had filed complaints with the Federal Aviation Administration.

US Airways Group Inc., the only U.S. carrier to charge for sodas, coffee and tea, said its new policy has cut cabin congestion and the time flight attendants spend serving drinks. The attendants, who initially opposed the program, would "riot" if the airline tried to return to the old system of free nonalcoholic beverages, President Scott Kirby said Thursday at a Calyon Securities conference in New York.

Delta Air Lines Inc., fighting a hostile takeover bid from US Airways Group Inc., has held talks with Northwest Airlines Corp. about a merger, a person familiar with the matter said Wednesday. Northwest, the fifth-largest U.S. carrier, wants to ensure that it is not left out of any industry consolidation, said the person, who declined to be identified because the meetings are private. The discussions are preliminary, the person said. A tie-up with Northwest may give No.

The chief executive of US Airways Group Inc. faced tough questioning at a Senate hearing Wednesday as lawmakers fretted that his company's proposed hostile takeover of Delta Air Lines Inc. would harm consumers, particularly those in rural areas. Doug Parker, CEO of Tempe, Ariz.-based US Airways, contended that the nearly $10-billion acquisition of Atlanta-based Delta would result in an efficiently run carrier that could offer low fares to fliers. He urged lawmakers to "let the market work."

The prospect of imminent airline industry consolidation faded Tuesday as US Airways Group Inc. reported no headway in its bid to take over rival Delta Air Lines Inc. US Airways Chief Executive Doug Parker said his airline's nearly $10-billion bid for Delta was firm and he had no intention of extending the Feb. 1 deadline for Delta's official committee of creditors to respond.

US Airways Group Inc.'s decision Wednesday to drop its hostile bid for Delta Air Lines Inc. has damped speculation that a wave of consolidation is about to sweep the industry. Airline deals may still be in the offing this year, analysts said. But the failure of US Airway's high-profile effort sends a strong signal that the number of big domestic carriers is unlikely to shrink in the near future.

Doug Parker, chief executive of US Airways Group Inc., was arrested on suspicion of drunk driving just hours after his company's $9.8-billion bid for Delta Air Lines Inc. had been rejected, police said Friday. Parker, 45, was pulled over at 11:30 p.m. Jan. 31 after leaving a party at the FBR Open golf tournament in Scottsdale, Ariz., said Sgt. Mark Clark of the Scottsdale Police Department. Parker was pulled over for driving 20 mph over the posted speed limit of 45 mph.

The chief executive of US Airways Group Inc. will spend one day in jail for his drunken driving arrest shortly after his airline's $9.8-billion bid for Delta Air Lines Inc. had been rejected. Doug Parker, 45, pleaded guilty in city court in Scottsdale, Ariz., to one DUI charge, according to the court clerk's office. Prosecutors asked that a second DUI charge and a speeding charge be dismissed. Municipal Court Judge Joseph Olcavage ordered Parker to spend 24 hours in jail March 15.

Six Muslim scholars who were kicked off a US Airways flight last fall have filed a lawsuit claiming the airline discriminated against them and violated their civil rights. The imams, five of whom live in the Phoenix area, were returning from a religious conference in November when they were taken off a plane in Minneapolis, handcuffed and questioned. They had prayed on their prayer rugs in the Minneapolis-St.