http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2006/08/11/BUGPNKFS2H1.DTL

 The terrorist plot to blow up U.S.-bound airplanes, disrupted by British
authorities Thursday, caused short-term damage to U.S. airlines that had
just begun to make money again after a long slump.
Airline stock prices gyrated, travelers were delayed and confused, and
airlines posted revised flight-cancellation policies.
British Airways, which canceled 400 of its London Heathrow flights on
Thursday, took the biggest hit, with its stock dropping Thursday by nearly
3 percent, to $70.48 from $73.33. Three U.S. airlines reported to be
targets of the bomb plotters reported mixed results. United Airlines owner
UAL fell 1.3 percent, to $23.52 from $23.88. Continental Airlines fell 1.5
percent, to $23.86 from $24.21, and American Airlines closed at $20.29,
unchanged for the day.
The long-term effect of the bomb plot is far from certain, industry
experts said.
If the plot is truly contained, as British authorities believe, its
effects on airlines will be less dramatic than the continuing high prices
of jet fuel, some said.
But if the public's threat perception remains high during the remaining
month of the peak summer travel season, it will complicate U.S. airlines'
efforts to pull out of the money-losing slump that followed the confluence
of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks using hijacked United and
American aircraft, the SARS scare, fears inspired by the war in Iraq, and
alarm over a possible outbreak of avian flu.
Major U.S. carriers recently posted second-quarter profits, with United --
the dominant carrier at San Francisco International Airport -- recording
its first profitable quarter in six years. But the latest threat may
complicate efforts by major U.S. carriers to rebuild.