McCarran carriers brace for Northwest strike

Northwest Airlines isn't a big player at Las Vegas's McCarran International Airport, but competing airlines here are trying to find seats for Northwest passengers should Northwest pilots go on strike.

For Las Vegas passengers going to or from Minneapolis, Detroit or Memphis, there are few options to rearrange nonstop travel.

Northwest already has canceled two flights each direction between Las Vegas and Detroit and two from Minneapolis tonight, and one each to Minneapolis, Memphis and Los Angeles on Saturday.

If the strike begins at 9:01 this evening, Las Vegas time, as threatened, Northwest's other routes through Las Vegas, including its much-publicized direct flight to Tokyo, could be scrubbed as well.

America West Airlines, Northwest's only direct-flight competitor to Minneapolis and Detroit from Las Vegas, announced Thursday it would honor tickets held by Northwest customers within 72 hours of their flight times on a space-available or standby basis.

United Airlines, which offers its Shuttle by United service between Las Vegas and Los Angeles, and Southwest Airlines, another major competitor in the Los Angeles market, also said they would honor Northwest tickets if a strike occurs.

Las Vegas passengers with flights to and from Memphis and Tokyo will have to arrange connecting routes on other airlines, since Northwest is the only carrier with nonstop service to those destinations.

Northwest has posted the entire list of domestic and international flight cancellations on its website www.nwa.com.

Meantime, Northwest and the Air Line Pilots Association aren't commenting as they continue marathon talks in hopes of reaching a contract settlement. Both sides report progress, but will say little else.

"We're still hopeful we can reach an agreement," airline spokeswoman Marta Laughlin said Thursday.

Issues include pay, job security, retirement and work rules.

The Eagan, Minn.-based airline has said a strike and the corresponding shutdown of its Airlink regional feeder service would eliminate 2,640 daily departures at 223 airports in the United States and abroad, affecting nearly 672,000 passengers in the first 10 days.

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