Realizing these goals will result in $2.5 billion in overall profit improvement.

We are in intensified negotiations with union leaders in order to reach consensual agreements that reduce labor costs by $1.4 billion annually.

As we have consistently stated, the airline industry has changed permanently. Northwest must significantly lower its costs to compete with other carriers. Many of these are legacy carriers that have already used the bankruptcy process to achieve changes in their cost structures or newer, low-cost carriers which have much lower labor and operating costs than legacy carriers.

Our third-quarter results clearly demonstrate the need for Northwest to restructure expeditiously.

We remain open to exploring various options to attain the needed labor costs savings but we need to resolve the issue quickly.

Northwest must significantly lower its costs to compete with other carriers. We had developed a plan ... outside of Chapter 11 and have been implementing that plan.

The decision by President Bush assures our customers that for at least the next 90 days their travel plans will be unaffected while we continue our efforts to reach agreement on a new contract for our mechanics, cleaners and custodians and that no strike or other job action is imminent. We will be working diligently to achieve a new contract during this period.

To operate at a profit, we must invest in these aircraft, and we must do so quickly.

When the strike began, the contract was terminated.