Northwest Matches American’s Hikes

Northwest Airlines said Wednesday that it plans to raise regular fares by up to 33% on more than half its system, matching increases announced by American Airlines the day before.

At the same time, American’s parent company revealed that it will report a “heavy” loss for the third quarter. The company, suffering from cuts implemented during the summer fare war, said it expects to exceed the $48-million loss registered in the second quarter.

American, the nation’s leading airline, announced Tuesday that it would raise regular 14-day advance purchase fares that weren’t increased during a fare restructuring in April. Also in those markets, American plans to raise ticket prices by another 4.4%, which has been included in most other routes to cover fuel costs.

That increase covers about 800 markets, or 5% of American’s route system. The increases would make the fares 10% to 33% higher than the regular 14-day advance purchase price.

Northwest dropped a plan initiated by Delta Air Lines to raise fares by 5% across the board. Northwest also decided not to double its $25 re-ticketing charge, following American’s lead.

In the markets where American is raising fares, Northwest said it will increase its prices where the two compete. Northwest also plans to hike fares in some other markets.