A secret sign for frequent flier 'pests'

Some US Airways frequent fliers think the airline's management treats them like an unwanted pest. Specifically, that most persistent of pests: the cockroach.

The ill will started when US Airways cracked down on business travelers buying cheap, nonrefundable tickets earlier this year. But the real kicker was a comment senior vice president B. Ben Baldanza made to justify the change.

"Someone who flies a lot isn't necessarily loyal if what they're doing is buying the lowest-priced ticket every time they fly," he told USA Today. "That's not necessarily the kind of loyalty we want to reward. We want to reward those people who pay a premium for the services we offer."

That prompted several US Airways frequent fliers who chat on Web bulletin boards to create a support group: US-Cockroach.

Bob Johnson (a.k.a. PineyBob) of Mystic Island, N.J., says he and fellow cockroaches like the airline and go out of their way to fly it. But they are offended that executives such as Baldanza don't consider them loyal because they don't pay top dollar.

"Maybe we're not as profitable to them (as full-fare fliers), but we're there every week on their planes. That's got to be worth something.'

The group has a Web site (www.us-cockroach.com) and a Cockroach Quiz to measure a traveler's "roachosity." (True or False: The upcoming code share with United will be called "the Chapter 22 Alliance?")

Now, the group is selling a lapel pin so members can identify each other without tipping off the airline. The pins, a cockroach with replica US Airways flag logo, are availble for $3.10 each on the Web site and will begin appearing on lapels this month.

US Airways says Baldanza's comment wasn't meant to slight anyone. "If anything we said was perceived as insulting, that was not the intent," a spokesman said. "All customers are equally important to us."

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