EUGENE, Ore. - There’s more turbulence at the Eugene airport, as two airlines have announced flight cuts that will leave Western Oregon without daily non-stop connections to three business and vacation hot spots.

Delta Airlines announced Tuesday that it will drop its 13 weekly non-stop flights to Los Angeles.

And a US Airways spokesman confirmed late Wednesday that the daily flights to Phoenix and Las Vegas operated by Mesa Air will come to an end. 

The decisions by the airlines are just the latest in a string of recent flight reductions, as high fuel prices and the struggling economy have hit the industry hard.

Even though Los Angeles is the second most-popular destination out of Eugene, that route will be grounded on Sept. 2. 

“It's terrible, it’s awful,” said Steve Miller, who flies non-stop to LA about once a month.

Miller said he’s not looking forward to the alternatives. 

"I'll fly through San Francisco or do something like that,” he said. “I'd prefer not to do that, but you do what you have to do.”

Airport spokeswoman Cathryn Stephens said demand on the route is high. In this case, it's just that Delta and its regional carrier, ExpressJet, ended their contract. Rising fuel costs made it impossible for ExpressJet to make money flying for Delta.

Stephens says she hopes another airline will pick up the flight.

“Right now, it looks like that non-stop flight is going away,” she said. “But it eventually could work itself out where there is a different carrier.” 

But travelers shouldn’t count on it.

“Right now I don't think the airlines are looking to expand any routes,” she said. “They're looking to survive these high fuel prices.”

US Airways spokesman Phil Gee agreed, saying that oil in the range $130 to $140 a barrel just made the flights to Las Vegas and Phoenix unprofitable. The last dates for those flights are Sept. 2 and Sept. 30, respectively. Discount carrier Allegiant Air continues to fly non-stop to Las Vegas twice weekly.  

There have now been six flight reductions to hit the airport this year. Horizon Air dropped its non-stop service to Los Angeles in January and a flight to Seattle in June. And United Airlines will stop mainline service to San Francisco in September, although regional jet service will continue.

Delta’s flights to Salt Lake City will not be affected by the cuts, because it will use a different regional carrier.