Turbulent times for US airline companies

Several US carriers are fighting for survival. US Airways, the seventh largest US airline, on Sunday filed for bankruptcy protection for the second time in two years after failing to sufficiently reduce costs. Concessions close to two billion dollars from 28,000 employees starting in 2002 were not enough. David Bonner, president of US Airways' board of directors, warned since August that a second bankruptcy filing could lead to liquidation. Delta Air Lines announced an aggressive restructuring plan Wednesday that would cut 6,000 to 7,000 jobs over the next 18 months. Delta said it was targeting more than five billion dollars in annual cash savings by 2006 and was on track to deliver nearly half of that total by the end of this year.