US Airways Group Inc. said that if it acquires Delta Air Lines, the combined carrier would continue to fly to every city that both airlines currently serve.
But US Airways spokesman Phil Gee said Monday the company won’t decide whether it would curtail flights to various cities until it can get a better look at Delta’s business operations.
“We just don’t know yet,” Gee said.
In November, US Airways said it planned to buy the Atlanta-based Delta in a hostile takeover. Delta is reviewing the US Airways takeover bid, now worth $10.1 billion, though its management and pilots union have repeatedly said they oppose the offer.
Delta’s management has said a combined airline would fail to get regulatory approval because of the overlap of the two carriers’ routes.
Tempe, Ariz.-based US Airways spoke about its plans after U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-NY, told US Airways CEO Doug Parker that a combined airline could mean fewer flights — and higher prices — for upstate New York fliers.
Schumer said if it buys Delta, the carrier would make up all commercial flights in Binghamton, about half of flights in Syracuse, and more than a third of flights in Rochester, Albany, and Buffalo.
US Airways sent Schumer a response on Friday, saying that its customers in New York would still see competitive fares.
“Customers in those cities will have convenient service to a broader range of destinations on one airline, in one frequent flyer program,” Parker said in the letter, which was released to the media Monday.
US Airways expects to save $1.65 billion each year by trimming its fleet of aircraft, cutting redundant routes and other synergies. Parker said the company would pass those savings along to its customers in the form of more reasonable fares.
“It simply doesn’t follow that consolidation should or will lead to higher fares, and we have our own track record — nationally and in New York — to prove it,” Parker said.
Schumer said in a statement he’s pleased US Airways plans to serve the same cities.
“But we still do not know if they intend to eliminate flights, services, or jobs,” Schumer said. “There is still a lot we do not know.”
Shares of US Airways Group fell $1.26, or 2 percent, to $57.03 at the end of trading Monday on the New York Stock Exchange.