In 2013 US Airways merged with AMR, the parent of American Airlines, in a deal worth $11 billion. The milestone transaction created the world's largest airline. The combined entity retained the American Airlines name and is led by Doug Parker, the former CEO for US Airways.

Operations

US Airways combines two main approaches to the airline business: low-fare, low-cost (similar to Southwest Airlines and JetBlue), and international hub-and-spoke, with amenities (like American Airlines and United). To enhance the customer experience in general, US Airways has replaced 12 Boeing 737s with Airbus A321s, which include Gogo Inflight Internet service and additional First Class seating. Also the company installed a First Class cabin on 110 US Airways Express regional jets and began installing the Envoy Suite, which include fully lie-flat business-class seats and on-demand entertainment system, on its wide-body Airbus A330-300 aircraft.

US Airways reports its revenue through four primary segments: mainline passenger (65% of total sales), express passenger (24%), cargo (1%), and other (10%).

Geographic Reach

US Airways has hubs in Charlotte, North Carolina; Philadelphia; and Phoenix. Secondary hubs reside in New York and Boston.

Financial Performance

US Airways has enjoyed three straight years of unprecedented growth. Revenues jumped by 6% from $13.1 billion in 2011 to $143.8 billion in 2012 -- a historic milestone for the company. Its profits exploded, skyrocketing almost 800% from $71 million in 2011 to $637 million in 2012.

The company was helped by a 6% surge in mainline passengers revenue and a 9% increase in express passenger revenue for 2012. (These rises offset a 9% drop in cargo revenue.) Revenue passenger miles increased by 3% while available seat miles jumped by 2% during 2012.

Operating income doubled from $426 million in 2011 to $856 million in 2012. The surge in profits was attributed to special credits of roughly $100 million it earned in 2012, compared to $40 million in 2011.

Strategy

US Airways' future revolves around its historic 2013 merger with AMR, the parent of American Airlines. The combination is projected to provide substantial cost savings and synergistic benefits.

In 2012 US Airways began operating new flights from 42 slot pairs -- one slot able to handle either take-off or landing -- at Washington National that were acquired from Delta Air Lines. US Airways also acquired from Delta the right to operate additional daily service to Brazil in 2015. As part of the deal, Delta acquired 132 slot pairs at LaGuardia Airport in New York from US Airways for more than $66 million.

In addition to its nonstop route between the US and China (Beijing), US Airways added flights to Madrid and Dublin, Ireland, in mid-2011. US Airways is expanding its fleet of Airbus wide-body jets intended for overseas routes to fill the demand.