US Airways set a new performance mark this weekend by completing 5,000 transatlantic flights without interruption. This landmark coincides with six months of continuous transatlantic flying, dating back to May 2, 2002.

To celebrate this milestone, US Airways awarded 5,000 bonus Dividend Miles and offered complimentary celebratory beverages to all customers traveling on transatlantic flights on Saturday.

“I am proud to report US Airways was also number one in on-time arrivals according to the U.S. Department of Transportation in August and September 2002,” said B. Ben Baldanza, US Airways senior vice president of marketing and planning. “This is a tribute to our hard-working and dedicated employees and our team is continuing to make every effort to keep this exemplary service performance streak running.”

US Airways’ arrivals within 14 minutes of schedule - the time frame used by the DOT to establish on-time performance - were at 90.9 percent for both August and September 2002, placing US Airways first for the entire third quarter with 86.6 percent on-time completion. On transatlantic routes, US Airways held the first or second position in on-time arrivals for seven of 13 weeks from Aug. 1, 2002 through October 30, 2002, according to industry data.

Flight 197 from Manchester, U.K. to Philadelphia marked the 5,000th consecutive flight. Passengers and crew received small commemorative gifts. In addition, the Manchester base also celebrated 60 consecutive days of on-time service this weekend.

US Airways, the US Airways Express carriers and US Airways Shuttle provide service to 200 destinations worldwide, including 38 states in the U.S. The Caribbean destinations are: Antigua, Aruba, Barbados, Bermuda, Cancun, Cozumel, Grand Bahama Island, Grand Cayman, Montego Bay, Nassau, San Juan, Santo Domingo, St. Lucia, St. Thomas, St. Maarten, and St. Croix. US Airways Express also serves North Eleuthera, Governors Harbour, Marsh Harbour and Treasure Cay from Florida. In Canada, US Airways serves Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa. US Airways’ European destinations are Amsterdam, Frankfurt, London, Madrid, Manchester, Munich, Paris and Rome.

Reporters needing additional information should contact US Airways Corporate Communications at (703) 872-5100.

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