travelnews: United Airline

[Carolyn Wooley <cwooley@oregon.uoregon.edu>]

Following is a message that was received from one of our contract agencies
concerning United Airlines.  This should help alleviate any fears you may
have about doing buisness with United.


UNITED FILES FOR BANKRUPTCY PROTECTION

UAL Corp., the parent company of United Airlines, today announced that it
and certain of its U.S. subsidiaries have filed for protection under
Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.  The Chapter 11 process will
facilitate UAL's restructuring which is designed to restore the company to
long-term financial health while operating in the normal course of
business. 
UAL said that during its Chapter 11 case, it will maintain its ability to
continue its global operations and continue its long-standing commitment
to its customers, safety and reliability.  Chapter 11 permits a company to
continue operations in the normal course while it develops a plan of
reorganization to address its existing debt, capital and cost structures. 
UAL stressed that it is business as usual and that current and future
tickets on United flights will be honored, and United will continue to
participate fully in the Star Alliance.  Mileage Plus participants
continue to be able to accrue and redeem mileage on United and all partner
airlines.  The company said that its other code-share agreements will not
be affected by the filing.  Red Carpet Clubs remain open and ready to
serve customers. 
To ensure the smooth operation of the airline, the company said that it
has requested relief from the bankruptcy court allowing it to, among other
things, continue customer programs including Mileage Plus and Red Carpet
Clubs, continue making regular and timely payments to fuel vendors, hotels
and other services, obtain debtor-in-possession financing, assume
clearinghouse and interline contracts and pay employee salaries, wages and
benefits without interruption. UAL reported that in conjunction with its
filing, it has arranged commitments for $1.5 billion in
debtor-in-possession (DIP) financing.  In addition to approximately $800
million in unrestricted cash-on-hand, the DIP financing will provide
adequate liquidity to meet the anticipated needs of UAL and all of its
operating units to continue normal operations throughout the Chapter 11
process. 





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