ARLINGTON, Va. — The following statement was issued Wednesday by US Airways President and Chief Executive Officer David Siegel:

"All of us in the US Airways family are deeply saddened by today's Air Midwest accident in Charlotte, N.C., and I wish to express our deepest personal sympathy to the families and friends of passengers and crewmembers aboard the aircraft. Our thoughts and prayers are with them.

"We do not know and cannot speculate about what happened to Flight 5481, which is under investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board. Members of both US Airways' and Air Midwest' accident investigation teams are cooperating fully with the NTSB, the Federal Aviation Administration and other agencies. They have our complete support.

"A specially trained team of US Airways employees is traveling to Charlotte and the flight's destination city of Greenville/Spartanburg, S.C., to assist the families and loved ones of those on board Flight 5481. We are also working closely with the American Red Cross, which will be providing support.

"Our first priority is to provide a supportive and responsive environment for family members, and while we cannot lessen their sorrow, we will do everything in our power to assist them during this difficult time.

"I would also like to express our deep appreciation to those people in the emergency units who responded without hesitation and with great care. We are grateful to all of them."