WASHINGTON – Cleveland, home to Continental Airlines Inc.’s smallest U.S. hub airport, is trying to avoid the fate of another Ohio city caught in the fallout of an industry merger.

An agreement with United Airlines and Continental will keep at least 90 percent of their Cleveland flights for two years after they combine. That sets Cleveland apart from Cincinnati, the Delta Air Lines hub where cutbacks continue after that carrier’s 2008 purchase of Northwest Airlines.

“To an economy like Cleveland, that kind of stability is critical in terms of helping us rebound from this economic downturn,” airport director Ricky Smith said.

The accord assures travelers at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, Ohio’s largest, that air service will hold steady, Smith said.

The new United, as the combined company will be known once the merger concludes this month, has a “commitment to actually use that space,” he said.

Continental has about 170 daily departures from Cleveland and accounts for two-thirds of passengers. United has about 14 departures, according to the airline’s web site.

The agreement with Houston-based Continental, United and Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray is based on 2009 service levels and has additional commitments for three more years.

Delta now operates 160 daily flights at Cincinnati, or 47 percent fewer than two years ago, said Trebor Banstetter, an airline spokesman.