Katrina, high oil prices strain ailing airlines

Storm forces some carriers to cancel flights at busy Atlanta airport

ATLANTA – The one-two punch of Hurricane Katrina and oil prices briefly topping $70-a-barrel is giving the beleaguered major airlines just what they don
The result could mean more pain for Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines Inc., a major carrier to the area affected by the hurricane, as it continues to try to avoid a Chapter 11 filing. More broadly, the other airlines also could suffer. Like Delta, Eagan, Minn.-based Northwest Airlines Corp. also is in danger of bankruptcy.

Airline shares fell Monday.