The "world's biggest air carrier" that emerges from the merger of Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines Corp. probably would not lead to service cuts in southwestern Pennsylvania, a top airport official predicted yesterday.

Together, the two carriers account for about 29 departures -- or about 15 percent of the total flights -- leaving Pittsburgh International Airport each day. There is no overlap in cities served by the respective carriers, said Allegheny County Airport Authority Executive Director Brad Penrod. That reduces the chance that any flights might be cut if the merger is approved by shareholder and regulators, he said. Local officials also expect to keep up discussions with Northwest about a direct flight to Europe (Northwest has a partnership with KLM Dutch Airlines).

"We continue to work with them on what those possibilities are," Mr. Penrod said.

Added Michael Langley, chief executive officer of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development: "We believe our discussions with them will continue in earnest."

There was more speculation yesterday about industry consolidation beyond Delta and Northwest. Continental Airlines said it would review "strategic alternatives" in light of the Delta-Northwest union. One possibility, analysts have said, is a merger of Continental and United Airlines.

Any further tightening in the industry does not appear to threaten the options at Pittsburgh International, according to Mr. Penrod. Continental flies from Pittsburgh to Newark, Cleveland and Houston, while United goes to Washington, D.C., Chicago and Denver. Continental accounts for 5.8 percent of all passengers at Pittsburgh International, while United has 8.3 percent. They are the sixth- and fourth-largest carriers locally.

Delta and Northwest are the third- and seventh-largest carriers at Pittsburgh International, respectively. Delta flies from Pittsburgh to Atlanta, Cincinnati, New York and Salt Lake City, accounting for 11 percent of the total passenger traffic, while Minneapolis-based Northwest flies to Detroit, Memphis, Tenn., and Minneapolis, ferrying 5 percent of all passengers.

Combined, Delta and Northwest would rival Southwest for the second spot at Pittsburgh International. US Airways, despite numerous cutbacks this decade, is still the clear No. 1, with about 34 percent of total traffic.

Before 9/11, two bankruptcies and a merger with America West Airlines, US Airways accounted for more than 500 daily flights at Pittsburgh International, approaching 90 percent of all traffic.

US Airways said recently it anticipates a 3 percent to 4 percent reduction in capacity this year as it wrestles with the rising price of oil. Mr. Penrod said he asked US Airways if that meant more reductions in Pittsburgh and "they assured me" it did not.

US Airways has made similar promises before, only to change course later. But Mr. Penrod said, "Until they don't live up to that word, I will take them for it."

Overall, "we would expect to be in pretty good shape," he said, given the many changes in the airline industry this year. "Because we have low-cost carriers in town now, we will still have some very good competition" regardless of what happens nationally.