Comair is getting some heavy-duty help in trying to bring an end to its ongoing pilot strike, now in its 10th week.

        Officials from the Northern Kentucky and Greater Cincinnati chambers of commerce Wednesday said they were encouraging their members to write Tristate members of Congress and even President Bush, asking them to urge federal Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta to get involved.

        Many local business leaders, worried about the long-term status of Delta Air Lines' second-largest hub at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, have said they either have already sent such letters or plan to do so soon.

        “The Comair strike has been a major inconvenience,” said Brian Carley, a member of the Cincinnati chamber board and managing partner of the local office of Arthur Andersen (which has both Comair and Delta as clients). “But if they start cutting back on those (mainline) flights, that gets real serious.”

        Whether the new campaign will work remains in question. Neither side would be legally obligated to accept an invitation from Mr. Mineta either to negotiate or to accept arbitration. A spokesman for Mr. Mineta had no comment on what he might do.

        A union spokesman, Max Roberts, said the pilots would refuse an offer to arbitrate the strike.

        The strike hits Day 67 today, with both sides taking heavy damage that has spread throughout the community.

        There has been no contact between the company and the Comair branch of the Air Line Pilots Association since the pilots on May 12 overwhelmingly rejected a proposed settlement crafted by the National Mediation Board. The company and its parent, Delta, have lost almost $225 million, and 2,400 nonpilot employees have been laid off, including 1,650 locally.

        Meanwhile, 400 pilot positions have been eliminated. The airline's 1,350 pilots have lost a total of $9.64 million in salary since they walked off the job March 26, citing poor work rules, inadequate retirement benefits and job protection, and low pay.

        The campaign comes after senior Comair officials, including company president Randy Rademacher, met with both chambers late last week.

        Following those meetings, Comair presented suggested letters that ask for Mr. Mineta's involvement and a request that he ask both sides to accept binding arbitration.

        In addition, the Erlanger-based regional carrier, a wholly owned Delta subsidiary, included a request that Congress intervene to stop the pilots from invoking “struck work,” or requesting other Delta or Delta Connection pilots from flying Comair's idled routes.

        And Comair suggested that elected officials be asked to amend the Railway Labor Act — which governs labor negotiations in the railroad and airline industries — to institute mandatory arbitration to avoid future strikes.

        But the letters prepared by each chamber ask only for the involvement of the Transportation Department and Mr. Mineta.

        Charlie Pangburn, a Fort Mitchell lawyer and chairman of the Northern Kentucky chamber, said business leaders “are trying not to take sides.”

        “We would just like to have a somewhat neutral third party step in and bring this to some sort of a conclusion,” he said.

        Michael Fisher, president of the Greater Cincinnati Chamber, said it had received calls from the local chapter of ALPA, and Comair and Delta officials.

        Chamber officials believed the letters to Mr. Mineta were the best step, Mr. Fisher said.

        Transportation Department spokesman Bill Mosley said that, while Mr. Mineta was monitoring the strike, no letters had yet been received.

        The area's congressional delegation has already been involved in the strike. Rep. Ken Lucas, D-Richwood, and Rep. Rob Portman, R-Terrace Park, both have made calls to the union and Comair management. Mr. Roberts said he talked with the office of Sen. Mike DeWine, R-Ohio, Wednesday, and representatives of Sen. Jim Bunning, R-Ky., have also contacted the union and the company.

        “I am tremendously concerned that 2,000 employees have already been laid off and the company may close entirely without a quick resolution,” Mr. Lucas said in a statement.

        Comair spokeswoman Meghan Glynn said the company had been asked by local officials what they could do to help, and the company responded with what it would like to see in the letters.

        “These were only suggestions,” Ms. Glynn said.

        Mr. Roberts said the campaign comes as no surprise, acknowledging that union officials have written similar letters to businessmen and elected officials in every city Comair servedbefore the strike.

        “Still, the company is spending a tremendous amount of time, effort and money attempting to negotiate through local business leaders, the chamber of commerce, etc., instead of negotiating with the pilot group,” Mr. Roberts said.

        The new corporate interest comes as the economic impact of the strike continues, with 150 more local layoffs taking effect Tuesday.

        And many experts have said Delta may have to scale back on its mainline operations here if the strike continues long-term.

        That might endanger direct flights to big U.S. money centers such as New York, Washington and San Francisco, and international destinations such as Paris.

        Executives at companies like Toyota Motor Manufacturing North America Inc., Ashland Inc., Chiquita Brands International Inc., Kroger Co., Federated Department Stores Inc. and Procter & Gamble Co. make those trips regularly to visit far-flung operations.

        A cut in mainline flights “would be a major blow, not only for Procter & Gamble, but for the entire community,” said Bob Wehling, global marketing officer at P&G.

        Mr. Wehling said a warning from Comair's Mr. Rademacher that the loss of Comair's feeder flights could endanger the Delta hub “hit me right between the eyes.”

        The Comair strike has made it harder for Arthur Andersen to get people to cities like Detroit and Cleveland, but the accounting firm has managed that, Mr. Carley said.

        Cutting mainline Delta flights would up the ante to real economic damage, he said, because companies looking to locate here may reconsider.

        “I'm trying to attract new talent here all the time,” Mr. Carley said. “When I ask them to take an opportunity here in Cincinnati, they might say, "Wow, getting in and out of Cincinnati is a real pain.”

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