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Cultures Clash at Merging Airlines
US Airways and America West jets prepare to take off from the Phoenix airport last week. The airlines announced a plan to merge.
(By Matt York -- Associated Press)
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"When I think of America West I think of a low-cost airline that has a relatively good reputation. I would fly on them," said Betsy R. Snyder, a credit analyst for bond-rating agency Standard & Poor's who follows the airline industry.
And when she thinks of US Airways?
"Not my first choice to fly, just because of what you hear about their service," she said. "Their inferior service."
In the federal government's most recent airline performance statistics, for flights in March, America West ranked third among 19 U.S. carriers in on-time arrivals. US Airways was 17th.
America West apparently also could teach its new partner how to keep track of luggage. In terms of complaints about mishandled baggage, it posted the fifth-best record in March. US Airways, which has had labor problems and staffing shortages, was 18th.
America West has used employee incentives to improve customer service. For example, many employees received $50 bonuses this month because the airline exceeded its on-time goal in April.
US Airways traces its roots to a company called All American Aviation, which in 1939 began offering the first airmail service to small towns in western Pennsylvania and the Ohio Valley. The company changed its name to All American Airways in 1949 and to Allegheny Airlines in 1953, which in 1979 changed its name to US Air, which in 1997 became US Airways, acquiring several regional airlines along the way.
America West's history is a lot shorter. It was launched in 1983 with 280 employees, three Boeing 737s and a can-do spirit.
Originally modeled after no-frills Southwest Airlines, America West adopted a more-frills strategy, offering amenities such as newspapers, assigned seating and, later, first-class sections for passengers willing to pay more.
"From the start, we were a very employee-friendly place," said Michael Roach, the airline's co-founder and first president. America West maintained a 24-hour day-care center for its flight attendants' children. Its employees shunned labor unions.
By 1990 the airline had reported annual revenue of more than $1 billion and its fleet had more than 100 planes, serving 62 cities.
But the employees' optimism faded as their company grew too big too fast, spending money on unprofitable long-haul routes, including one to Nagoya, Japan, and plunging into bankruptcy court in the early 1990s.
