Sea_Tigger,

As someone mentioned, UAX is fee per departure, so all of their routes are "profitable." Mainline is having problems because revenue is currently lower than the system CASM of about 11.35 cents. UAX is currently at 16 cents on their CASM, but are shielded from the ramifications of that by their cost plus contracts. The expanded UAX flying is there primarily to stem losses when nearly all routes at trunk carriers are money losers, shrink capacity without shrinking flight options, and because UA management will try anything trendy to try and get Wall Street off their case(fat chance!). I don't know much about UsAir service cuts, but I would guess that those cuts are a result of the fact that UsAir currently has a limited number of SJ's in it's fleet, and is retiring turboprops.

Brucemcal,
The objection isn't to the formation of a new LCC, it's that Tilton wants it to be a separate corporation with new(non-UA) employees.