Prodding the Reluctant Airlines

Because flight delays are up 73% this year, air carriers have said they would be willing to discuss spreading out their flight schedules, which overload airports at peak periods. But no carrier wants to be first to shift flights to unpopular times. So preparations for industry-wide talks on scheduling, which require a Government exemption from antitrust prosecution, have proceeded about as slowly as a search for lost baggage.

To spur faster action, the Federal Aviation Administration said last week it was preparing to dictate takeoff and landing schedules on a minute-by-minute basis at the airports that account for 76% of the delays--New York City's Kennedy and La Guardia, Atlanta, Chicago, Denver and Newark. In Denver, for example, there are 58 scheduled landings between 11 a.m. and 11:30 a.m., although the airport's maximum is 30. The Government threat infuriated some carriers, which place much of the blame on shortages of fully qualified air-traffic controllers. One FAA official likened the airlines to a stubborn beast of burden. Said he: "Sometimes there's only one way to get a mule's attention."