US Airways Ranked First among “Big Five” Carriers in On-Time Arrivals and Baggage Handling for February and Annual Airline Quality Report

Employees earn $100 each for their efforts

TEMPE, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--US Airways (NYSE: LCC) ranked first among the “Big Five” hub and spoke airlines in the United States in February in two of three operational categories tracked by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) – on-time arrivals and baggage handling – in its Air Travel Consumer Report, released today. US Airways placed third in the third category, customer satisfaction, as measured by fewest complaints filed with the DOT.

“really set the bar for our competitors. In any month, US Airways consistently ranks first in any of the three key DOT metrics. That’s not true for our competitors. And it’s all possible because of the work we’ve done to build a reliable airline.”

Additionally, US Airways was ranked first among the nation’s big hub-and-spoke carriers, and 6^th overall, in the annual Airline Quality Report (AQR) released yesterday. The AQR is published by teams of researchers at Wichita State University in Kansas and Purdue University in Indiana. US Airways improved its ranking among the “Big Five” for the fifth consecutive year, and its 6^th place overall ranking was up from 8^th place a year ago.

US Airways’ top rankings in the DOT’s February report earned the airline’s employees payouts for their contributions to that outstanding performance. February is the 11^th consecutive month in which the carrier’s employees have earned such payouts. US Airways’ “Triple Play Bucks” program awards workers $50 every time the company places first in any of the three DOT monthly operational performance categories. Because US Airways placed first in two categories in February, employees will receive $100 in Triple Play payouts.

“When our customers fly us, they know they’ll arrive on-time, with their bags, and with minimal hassle,” said Robert Isom, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. “In 2010 we had six No. 1 finishes for bag performance, and we’re well on our way to achieve the same results this year.”

Isom added that US Airways employees have “really set the bar for our competitors. In any month, US Airways consistently ranks first in any of the three key DOT metrics. That’s not true for our competitors. And it’s all possible because of the work we’ve done to build a reliable airline.”

The AQR rankings further illustrate that US Airways’ focus on building a reliable airline is paying off. In 2005 US Airways ranked 15^th overall, but has risen in the rankings every year to 6^th in the latest AQR, which covers the year 2010. And US Airways’ operational improvement is particularly evident when comparing the performances of the nation’s big hub-and-spoke carriers. In the 2007 AQR US Airways ranked sixth among six such airlines. In 2008 US Airways moved up to fourth, and then to third in 2009. In 2010 US Airways’ ranked first among five hub-and-spoke carriers. Northwest disappeared from the rankings following the completion of its operational merger with Delta, which acquired Northwest in 2008. United and Continental were ranked separately in the 2010 AQR despite their recent merger.

About US Airways

US Airways, along with US Airways Shuttle and US Airways Express, operates more than 3,200 flights per day and serves more than 200 communities in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Europe, the Middle East, the Caribbean, Central and South America. The airline employs 32,000 aviation professionals worldwide and is a member of the Star Alliance network, which offers its customers 21,000 daily flights to 1,160 airports in 181 countries. Together with its US Airways Express partners, the airline serves approximately 80 million passengers each year and operates hubs in Charlotte, N.C., Philadelphia and Phoenix, and a focus city in Washington, D.C. at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. US Airways was the only airline included as one of the 50 best companies to work for in the U.S. by LATINA Style magazine’s 50 Report for 2010. For the sixth year in a row, the airline also earned a 100 percent rating on the Human Rights Campaign Corporate Equality index, a leading indicator of companies’ attitudes and policies toward lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees and customers. For more company information, visit usairways.com. (LCCG)

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