Airlines around the world said they would make more drastic cuts to their flying schedules, shed jobs and seek government aid after countries further tightened border restrictions due to the fast spreading coronavirus.
United Airlines, for example, booked $1.5 billion less revenue in March than the same time last year and warned employees that planes could be flying nearly empty into the summer, even after severe flight cuts.
The major US airline said it would cut corporate officers’ salaries by 50% and reduce flight capacity by about 50% in April and May, with deep capacity cuts also expected into the summer travel period. “This crisis is moving really quickly,” United chief executive Oscar Munoz and president Scott Kirby said in a memo to employees on Sunday.
Things worsened over the weekend as Spain declared a state of emergency, the US Trump administration added the UK and Ireland to its list of countries facing travel curbs, and Australia and New Zealand said all travellers would have to self-isolate for 14 days. As GDNonline reported earlier, Gulf Air is complying with the order of the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) in Saudi Arabia to temporarily suspend all flights to and from Saudi Arabia until further notice.