Is "US Airways" A Liability?

What's in a name? In the merger between the US Airways and America West, the decision to slap the US Airways moniker on the new entity could wind up as a liability, according to some analysts.

But then, it could be worse, according to one survey. The combined company could have decided to call itself America West.

In a recent consumer poll by JD Power and Associates, of eleven major US airlines, travelers ranked US Airways eighth. They ranked America West tenth.

The US Airways brand means "lost luggage" to some travelers. The airline has the worst lost-bag rate in the industry right now, according to the US Department of Transportation. DOT says that problem is getting worse, with the number of complaints on the rise in the first quarter of 2005. On lost baggage, America West ranks slightly better than the national average, according to the DOT report.

US Airways is also less-than-average when it comes to on-time performance, arriving as promised only about 70-percent of the time, according to DOT figures studied by CNN. Again, the network reports, America West arrives on time slightly better than the national average.

And yet, the idea of naming the baby US Airways has its supporters. I know it's been tarnished a bit but it's a nationally and internationally known brand," Ray Neidl, airline analyst with Calyon Securities, told CNN. "Remember America West has had its troubles too. And it's more of a regional name. And I think US Air still has some value."

America West spokesman Phil Gee told CNN both companies played the name game during merger talks.

"It can be very expensive to rebrand an entire airline," he said.

What about US Airways' recently-smudged nameplate? Those smudges, Gee said, should polish off just fine in the long-run. "We feel if we run a great airline, if we take care of the employees and they take care of the customers, the name will take care of itself."

FMI: www.americawest.com, www.usairways.com