Other carriers, Amtrak ready to help stranded US Airways passengers

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- US Airways customers might be frustrated -- but not out of luck -- if flight attendants strike at 12:01 a.m. ET Saturday and the airline shuts down as promised.

US Airways says it has made arrangements with competing carriers and Amtrak to honor its tickets. But that's no guarantee there will be enough seats -- especially in the Eastern United States.

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Your ticket method? Paper Tickets eTickets -------- Advice on what to do if you have a US Airways ticket

The airline controls more than a third of the air travel in that market, and this is spring break, when college students take vacations en masse. Rhonda Heimsath, of Omega Travel, says US Airways ticket holders should pack their patience along with other necessities.

"There may be some availability," she says, "but you have to be flexible with your times and willing probably to have long layovers in order to make where you are going."

Trading e-tickets for paper ones

For passengers holding electronic tickets, experts advise going to a US Airways counter to get a paper ticket. Other airlines won't honor an e-ticket because their computer databases are not linked.

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The latest on negotiations between US Airways and flight attendants' union
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The US Airways flight routes that would be most affected by a shutdown
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Amtrak also says it will only honor paper tickets. The passenger rail service says it will put more rail cars in the Northeast corridor between Boston and Washington to accommodate would-be US Airways travelers.

But in the face of threatened wildcat walkouts by flight attendants demanding better pay and pension benefits, plus a looming shutdown by the airline, there's plenty of airport anxiety.

"Florida is OK to get stuck in," one flier says. "But I have to get back here to work."

Others are less optimistic.

"I think I could be OK, but I probably won't," another says.

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