US Airways Group will Seek China Service by March '08

TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) -- US Airways Group Inc. on Friday said it will apply to offer nonstop service to China and asked the U.S. Department of Transportation to put off considering a request for similar service by Delta Air Lines Inc. until its application can be considered.

The request pits US Airways against Delta just a week after the Tempe-based company's effort to buy the bankrupt airline for $9.8 billion was rejected by Delta's creditors committee.

Delta applied for federal approval to fly between its Atlanta base and Shanghai on Jan. 19, saying in its application that it wanted to begin flights by March 2008.

US Airways said it has been considering a route to China "for quite some time" and is now working with U.S. and Chinese airports it is considering serving. It did not disclose the cities it may serve.

The transportation department reviews proposals for service to China under a 2004 agreement that called for 195 new weekly flights phased in over a six-year period. United Airlines won final approval for a nonstop route from Washington to Beijing after an aggressive competition

Airlines want the routes to tap into the booming Chinese economy.

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