USAir Media Blitz Defends Carrier Safety : Airlines: The advertising campaign is a bid to ‘validate our operations’ in the wake of September’s deadly crash.

Troubled USAir Group Inc. launched a three-day media blitz Monday, trying to convince the public that its operations are safe even as new concerns surfaced about a deadly September crash near Pittsburgh.

USAir ran a letter to travelers in about 40 newspaper advertisements, and other ads will be published today and Wednesday, a spokeswoman said.

“We know we are safe, but we want to say to the public that we want you to know that too, so we’re taking some extraordinary measures to validate our operations,” spokeswoman Andrea Butler said.

The full-page letter that ran in The Times and other major newspapers told of an independent audit of the airline’s safety operations to be conducted by PRC Aviation of Tucson. It also announced that retired Gen. Robert Oaks, a former commander of U.S. Air Force operations in Europe, will oversee USAir’s air and ground safety operations.

“In closing, let me say that we will not rest until each and every member of the flying public shares in the certainty of our commitment to be the safest of airlines,” said the letter signed by Chairman Seth Schofield.

The safety record of Arlington, Va.-based USAir has been under scrutiny since the crash near Pittsburgh that killed 132 people.

Court papers that surfaced over the weekend contend several passengers coming off the plane on the first leg of the fatal flight reported unusual sounds. USAir said a chief mechanic asked the cockpit crew about the passenger reports but that the crew told him it had no problems with the plane.

“Unless and until a cause is identified for Flight 427, we will continue to be the subject of media speculation and public concern on our safety record,” Butler said.

Butler said USAir sent information packets to more than 21,000 corporate clients and travel agents last week disputing a recent New York Times report that cited safety problems.

Industry and travel experts said USAir’s traffic has suffered due to the September crash. Including that accident, the airline has experienced five fatal crashes in five years.

“We think the effects are more from the lingering coverage suggesting we’ve cut corners, and nothing could be further from the truth there,” Butler said.

She said advance bookings indicate passenger traffic will return to normal by January.

But industry experts were skeptical that traffic will return that soon to USAir, especially because the period after the winter holidays is the slowest time of year for air travel.

USAir’s stock closed 25 cents higher at $4.50 on the New York Stock Exchange. That contrasts with its 52-week high of $15.375.