ATA Airlines Receives FAA ``Diamond Award'' For Second Consecutive Year.

Business Editors

INDIANAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 6, 2003

ATA (ATA Airlines, Inc.)(Nasdaq:ATAH) was honored by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) last week for its commitment to airline safety when the Company was awarded the prestigious 2002 FAA "Diamond Award." As a recipient of the "Diamond Award" for the second year in a row, ATA was recognized for the level of advanced training provided to aircraft maintenance professionals beyond the compulsory FAA training requirements.

The awards ceremony, held at ATA's Indianapolis headquarters, also honored 86 percent of the Company's eligible maintenance employees with FAA Aviation Maintenance Technician Awards (AMT). The awards recognize employees for individual training hour achievements.

"This is a proud day for ATA," said George Mikelsons, ATA Chief Executive Officer and Founder, as he accepted the Company award. "Winning this award took a collaborative effort which involved ATA's maintenance staff and management as well as the FAA."

Terry Kerber, ATA Vice President of Maintenance and Engineering, explained that the awards signify the efforts the Company and employees continuously put forth towards learning about new technology in aircraft maintenance.

"We are extremely proud of our staff," said Kerber, adding that the Company is well on its way to achieving the 2003 awards. "We are dedicated to training our staff and therefore standing behind our commitment to safety."

A total of 725 ATA employees out of 843 received the following AMT awards:

Bronze (6-11 hours of training): 56 employees

Silver (12-25 hours of training): 124 employees

Gold: (26-59 hours of training): 246 employees

Ruby (60-99 hours of training): 170 employees

Diamond (100 or more hours of training): 129 employees

In April, ATA Connection (doing business as Chicago Express Airlines, Inc.), a wholly owned subsidiary of ATA Holdings Corp., was honored for the fourth year in a row with the "Diamond Award." ATA Connection provides regional airline service between Chicago-Midway and 13 Midwestern cities, including Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Dayton, Ohio; Des Moines, Iowa; Flint, Mich.; Grand Rapids, Mich.; Indianapolis; Lexington, Ky.; Madison, Wis.; Milwaukee; Moline, Ill.; Springfield, Ill.; South Bend, Ind.; and Toledo, Ohio. From Chicago, passengers can continue travel on ATA Airlines to over 30 international and domestic destinations.

Now celebrating its 30th year of operation, ATA is the nation's 10th largest passenger carrier based on revenue passenger miles. Stock of the Company's parent company, ATA Holdings Corp. is traded on the Nasdaq Stock Market under the symbol "ATAH."