NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - United Airlines may be on the verge of flying out of bankruptcy, just as two of its competitors contemplate seeking the protection from creditors.

United Airlines parent UAL Corp. (Research) announced it has four proposals for all-debt exit financing from four different banks and that it expects to file its plan of reorganization to end the nearly three-year bankruptcy process soon.

"The recent agreement with the holders of public aircraft debt clears one of the last major hurdles to exiting bankruptcy," said a statement from Chief Financial Officer Jake Brace. "Clearly, United is well on the way to completing the Chapter 11 reorganization process and emerging as a strong competitor."

United has not reported a profitable quarter since 2000, but it did report Thursday that it earned an operating profit of $113 million for July 2005, a peak travel month. That's up $62 million over the same period a year earlier, even though the airline saw a $127 million increase in fuel costs.

"The year-over-year improvement in operating profit despite record fuel prices demonstrates United's significantly improved competitiveness," Brace's statement said.

United, the world's No. 2 airline, filed for bankruptcy protections in December 2002. Airline debt and equity analysts believe both Delta Air Lines (Research), the nation's No. 3 carrier, and No. 4 Northwest Airlines (Research), could file bankruptcy within the next two months. Spokespeople for Delta and Northwest have previously said their management teams are doing what they can to avoid a bankruptcy filing, although neither airline could rule out the possibility.

Delta notified its pilots union a week ago that its cash reserves had fallen below a specified level, which triggered talks on a new round of wage concessions with the union.

Northwest had its mechanics union go on strike Aug. 20, although the airline has continued to fly using replacement workers, management and outside contractors. Northwest's mechanics union refused job and wage cuts that would have saved the airline $176 million a year, part of its plan to shave $1.1 billion in annual labor costs.

The federal bankruptcy law that has allowed UAL to go nearly three years without creditors and other stakeholders submitting an alternate reorganization plan that might have called for liquidation will change Oct. 17. The new law gives companies filing for bankruptcy only an 18-month exclusive period to get such a plan approved by the court.

Philip Baggaley, Standard & Poor's senior airlines credit analyst, said that the change in bankruptcy law, coupled with the difficult labor negotiations, high fuel costs and a $3.8 billion shortfall in its pension funds, could prompt Northwest to file for bankruptcy before Oct. 17. He said that a worsening cash position at Delta, triggered by demands for cash from its credit card processor, could spur a filing well before then.

For a look at latest on how Northwest is weathering its mechanics strike, click here.