US Air Cool to American’s Bid for Shuttle

American Airlines moved to buy US Airways Shuttle, a commuter airline serving New York, Washington and Boston, but US Airways, which operates the service, was expected to rebuff the bid. In an attempt to strengthen its position in the lucrative Northeast corridor, American Airlines, a unit of AMR Corp., said it reached a binding agreement to buy the stock, warrants and debt of Shuttle Inc. from the investment group that owns it for an undisclosed price. However, the agreement is contingent upon US Airways’ decision not to exercise its option to purchase the shuttle or its right to match American’s offer, and industry analysts said they doubt US Airways will let the shuttle go without a fight. US Airways said it has “exclusive contract rights” to buy the shuttle and is working with the banks that partly own the service “to determine how we will proceed.” AMR’s stock gained 62.5 cents to $97.50 a share on the New York Stock Exchange. US Airways gained 12.5 cents to $34.75, also on the NYSE.