European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - May 27, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Saturday. May 27, 1989 the stars and stripes Page 3 record season predicted for airline travel major . Airlines ranked by International service in billions of overseas Revenue passenger Miles for 12 months ending August 1988 pan am Northwest by the associated press from Tabor travails and terrorist threats to rising fuel prices and aging planes the nation s airlines face daunting challenges As their busiest season begins with the memorial Day weekend. Nonetheless Industry analysts an travel agents expect Strong ticket sales this summer for air travel As stable fares at Home and a More valuable Dollar abroad lure vacationers. I think it s going to be a record sum Mer said Louis Marckesano an airline analyst for Janancy Montgomery Scott inc., a Philadelphia securities firm. The airline Industry has been turned on its head with Competition growing fiercer and takeover raiders swarming Over profitable Northwest airlines. But the Industry s biggest trauma this year a bitter labor strike at Eastern airlines has t resulted in the mass inconvenience to travellers that originally was feared. Instead it s turned out to be a Boon for Eastern s leading competitors. Delta air lines american airlines. Pan am corp. And us air group inc. Are reaping profits from the woes of Eastern which has been in chapter ii bankruptcy Protection since March 9. Together the rivals have capture Dan estimated $6 Mil lion to $7 million a Day in Revenue lost by Eastern which has been virtually grounded by the walkout that started March 4. The extra profits have Given Many big airlines a Cushion against surging fuel prices sparing them from increasing fares Marckesano and others suggested. Eastern s sister Carrier Continental airlines announced last month that it was raising its Max Saver discount fares by up to 18 percent. But Continental often a Price Leader recently retracted the fare increase after other carriers failed to match its initiative. That could signal an end at least temporarily to what had been a trend of rising fares. Air tariffs have in creased by As much As 20 percent this year Over 1988, some analysts said. I Don t think there arc going to be vast increases in fares said Andrew Geller who follows the Industry for provident National Bank in Philadelphia. The halt to the spiral in fares has occurred despite a dramatic Rise in prices a Jet fuel caused partly by the Oil spill 22.3 Twa american United Continental 15.24delta Eastern 1=13.35 Chicago Tribune graphic source . Department of transportation Irice of in Alaska and expectations of possible Short Ages in Oil supplies. Jet fuel one of the biggest costs in the airline Industry has jumped to about 65 cents a gallon from 58.7 cents in february. The March 24 Exxon Tanker spill delayed shipments of crude Oil to refineries. Projections by a Mark inc., an aviation consulting concern suggest Jet fuel costs will Rise even More in the years ahead hitting at least 80 cents a gallon by Century s end. The apparent slowdown in the econ omy credited in part to higher interest rates that have normally discouraged con Sumers from spending appears to have had Little effect on air travel. Robert Joedicke an analyst at Shear son Lehman Mutton inc. In new York expects passenger traffic this summer to be at least As Good As last year was with in the United states and stronger than a lot of people think  business is up fairly substantially for this summer Over last  said David per clean president of do travel in new York. Bookings to Europe Are running 15 percent to 30 percent above last summer while Domestic travel is up slightly he Esti  anticipated growth in foreign travel is largely because of the rebounding Dollar analysts say. . Cur Rency has been surging in value against the japanese yen. West German Mark and British Pound in re cent weeks. This Means it takes fewer dollars to vacation in Japan and Europe than it did a year ago. In addition inter National airlines like pan am arc sharply discounting fares to Europe this summer. Pan am s foreign passenger traffic Rose 1.9 percent in de Cember 1988 when compared to last year. But it dropped 8.6 percent in january and 14 percent in february largely because of the . 21 explosion of a .-bound flight Over Lockerbie Scotland that has been blamed on a terrorist bomb. But pan am s overseas traffic has been picking up and is expected to Post an in crease for May spokeswoman Pamela Hanlon said in new York. Air terrorism in t the Only fear in Fly ing that has kept travellers away. Some would be passengers arc still wary of the stories about aging planes that break up in flight despite the recent flurry of orders for new aircraft by Many big carriers seek ing to rejuvenate their fleets. 914.9 312.98 u 12.88 311.9 18.48 busiest airports flight operations 1 number of takeoffs and Landing for 1988, through nov. 30 o Hare 734,817 Atlanta 711,760 Dautas it Worth 620,074 los Angeles 563,934. Denver 461,464 san Francisco 420,768 Boston 401,610 St Louis 399,487. Philadelphia 382�59 Detroit 367,074 1 passengers in millions of passenger boardings for 1967 o Hare Atlanta dates a Worth los Angeles Denver san Francisco new York Laguardia Newark Boston new York Kennedy 26 23 20 19 16 13 11 11 10 10 Chicago Tribune graphic sources Federal aviation administration . Department of transportation passengers still agree on . Peregu Afton Dallas a turmoil within the airline Industry has some Passen Gers a Little nervous but they re still flying and generally want the govern ment to stay out of the business. Random interviews by the associated press with travellers at big air ports nationwide suggested the underly ing demand for airline scats remains Strong As the country Heads into the traditional memorial Day summer Kickoff. At the same Lime the travelling pub Lic has a High level of awareness on is sues confronting the airline Industry an Eastern airlines strike and aging air Craft among them. Flying is probably less Safe because some of the jets arc a lot older said Mike Osborne a St. Louis businessman passing through Chicago s o Hare International Airport last week. Structurally they re beginning to have problems i  Many carriers arc Rushing to buy air planes to expand and replace their fleets. On tuesday the National transportation safety Board reported an in dust wide deficiency in the inspection of the popular but aging Boeing 737 air planes. Everybody s on strike Richard Siska a St. Louis businessman said in Chicago. You be got management doing work that they re not qualified to do. And it s the passengers who take the  despite the concerns flying is still safer than driving said Jason Manning a jewelry Salesman travelling through seat la Tacoma International Airport. A businessman at Mansfield Atlanta International Airport said the govern ment should t reassert its regulatory authority Over the airline business which it largely relinquished 10 years ago. Prices arc going up there s no ques Tion. A lot of it is to cover their operating  he said. But because of deregulation Many airlines arc marking Down their prices to compete. Passen Ger traffic is up but 1 think they arc concentrating on improving their air Craft and upgrading maintenance. The airlines arc doing just Fine now and Competition will establish the Price he said. Cynthia Kinsy an air Force air plane Mechanic travelling through Chi Cago was one of the few who said More regulation is needed. It s letting people get a Little Loose with what they do Kinsy said. Safety service they re All sliding a Little bit Here and there the changes in the Industry arc hav ing some effect on the airports depend ing on their connections with specific airlines. Atlanta for example is a major Hub for Eastern and at times it certainly has been More hectic due to the Eastern strike a Delta employee said. But at Dallas fort Worth International Airport the main effect of the Eastern strike is expected to be a boost in Public relations  spokesman Joe Dalcy said that the reduction in Eastern s operations in Atlanta should allow the Texas Airport to leapfrog Over Hartsfield to become the world s second or third busiest Airport. Mondale staying out of Senate race Walter f. Mondale Minneapolis a former vice president Walter f. Mondale said on Fri Day that he will not enter the 1990 race for a . Senate scat in Minnesota. I believe it s time for other Candi dates to step Forward said Mondale a former senator who was the democratic party s presidential nominee in 1984. It was a very difficult Choice for  Mondale said he has enjoyed his life out of political office and has seen too Many colleagues remain in the Senate for too Long. He was considering running against incumbent Rudy Bosch wit?., a Republican. I m at peace with myself Mondale said. We took a lot of Lime making this decision and it s a Basic one. It s a lot easier deciding when to get into politics As opposed to when to  a poll commissioned by Mondale indicated that the former vice president could defeat Boschwitz in the 1990 race. The poll released by Mondale s son Ted Mondale. Shows Mondale leading Bosch Witz by 51 percent to 40 percent with 8 percent undecided Mondale. A protege of the late sen. Hubert h. Humphrey generally has been considered the most formidable Candi Date democrats could Field against Boschwitz a two term senator. Mondale represented Minnesota in the Senate from 1965 until 1976, when he ran for vice president with Jimmy Carter. He ran unsuccessfully for presi Dent against Ronald Reagan in 1984. Speculation that he planned to run again began in june 1987, when Mondale moved Back to Minnesota from Washington . Mondale 61, is an attorney with a Minneapolis Law firm. Boschwitz 58, was elected to the sen ate in 1978. Democrat Paul Wellston a political science professor at Carleton College in Northfield has said he will seek the sen ate nomination