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Bay area travelers seek factsBy KYLE PARKS © St. Petersburg Times, published January 11, 2001
"Perhaps this was inevitable," he said Wednesday, waiting for a Tampa-to-St. Louis TWA flight at Tampa International Airport. "It's like the auto industry years ago," said Rodeman, who runs a Columbia, Mo., medical courier company and was returning from a vacation in the Tampa Bay area. "Maybe there needs to be a shakeout where the best companies survive." Still, Rodeman and other longtime TWA passengers worry about what the impending sale to American Airlines means for them: Will American cut routes to St. Louis, a city that has few options but TWA? Will fewer airlines mean higher fares? And will TWA customers keep their frequent flier miles? There were few detailed answers to such questions Wednesday. And many passengers and travel professionals worry that with United Airlines poised to buy US Airways, a lack of competition could affect pricing and availability of flights to cities such as Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and Omaha, Neb. "From a corporate standpoint, we'll have less leverage because there will be less competition between airlines," said Norma Rohrbach, a vice president who handles global travel for Citigroup out of its Tampa office. Citigroup's mortgage division has a major presence in St. Louis, making the route between that city and New York the company's fourth-busiest. Although American has said it would keep St. Louis as a hub, she said the airline could cut connections. While customers worry about routes and fares, TWA employees worry about their future, from whether they'll keep their jobs -- American has pledged to offer jobs to virtually all of them -- to what effect the deal would have on their benefits. TWA staffers at Tampa International reminisced about the past as they talked about the deal Wednesday. One recalled a 1960 flight when then-owner Howard Hughes kicked passengers off the plane so he and two pals could have it to themselves. The airline's troubles have led to camaraderie among its employees, who note the airline has improved its on-time performance in recent years. Bob Peiser, chief executive of Tampa-based Vitality Beverages Inc., knows that closeness firsthand. After he helped revive the airline as its chief financial officer in the mid-1990s, he was on a TWA flight whose crew decided to show their appreciation. They wrote thank-you messages on a first-class place mat and gave it to him. It's now framed in his downtown Tampa office. But employees and passengers have been frustrated by the various attempts to keep TWA going. A particular object of their scorn: financier Carl Icahn, who took over the airline in 1985 but lost control in the early 1990s. "Icahn bled TWA dry," Rodeman said. Connie Webb, another Tampa-to-St. Louis passenger Wednesday, was a TWA flight attendant in the 1970s. Webb, a St. Louis resident, is among those worried about how the move will affect routes to the Midwest. But mostly, she just feels a sense of loss. "It's a very sad day," she said. - Times staff writer Steve Huettel contributed to this report. Contact Kyle Parks at parks@sptimes.com or (813) 226-3405.
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From the Times Business report
From the AP
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