Aviation

Bloomberg Southwest Airlines Co is “in intensive care,” its chief executive officer said, urging employees to keep cutting expenses wherever possible as the new coronavirus continues to erode travel. The US discounter is evaluating the $50 billion federal programme that will provide loans and cash payments to help carriers meet payroll and other employee costs. It’s premature to know “how ...

Bloomberg Spirit Airlines Inc is temporarily suspending service at five airports in the US Northeast because of heightened government travel advisories aimed at curbing the spread of coronavirus. The pause begin this week at New York’s LaGuardia and New Jersey’s Newark Liberty International, Spirit said in an email. The discounter is also halting service to Hartford, Connecticut, and two destinations ...

Bloomberg EasyJet Plc grounded its entire fleet after completing customer-repatriation flights, and said it’s in talks to build a cash cushion to see it through the gap in business caused by the coronavirus. The restart of scheduled flights will depend on government restrictions as well as demand, the UK discount carrier said in a statement. The shares fell as much ...

Bloomberg Eight people were killed after a Lionair plane caught fire before it took off from Manila for Tokyo on a medical mission. The plane was a West Wind 24 aircraft bound for the Haneda airport in Japan with two passengers and six crew members on board, according to Manila airport authorities. Manila International Airport fire and rescue officials rushed ...

Bloomberg Two of the US’s biggest airlines are warning workers that the unprecedented loss of customers may leave both as smaller companies in the future, imperiling the nation’s airline jobs even after the government steps in with billions of dollars to help the industry weather the coronavirus pandemic. Top executives at Delta Air Lines Inc and United Airlines told their ...

Bloomberg Deutsche Lufthansa AG has applied for German subsidies to offset wages of some 31,000 workers that have been idled because the airline has largely grounded its fleet. The so-called Kurzarbeit programme affects cabin crew and ground staff, a spokesman confirmed to Bloomberg News by email. The company is in talks with its pilots union about similar measures, with a ...

Bloomberg Airlines worldwide raised more than $17 billion in bank loans in March to shore up their finances amid the coronavirus outbreak. US carriers were the most active, borrowing $12.5 billion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Delta Air Lines Inc is the top borrower this month, obtaining $5.6 billion, followed by Singapore Airlines Ltd, which secured a S$4 billion ...

Bloomberg Seven airlines in Thailand are set to start talks with the Finance Ministry for a 16 billion baht ($491 million) bailout, the Bangkok Post reported. The airlines have jointly agreed to seek help, the newspaper said, citing Tassapon Bijleveld, executive chairman of Asia Aviation Pcl, the largest shareholder of Thai AirAsia. The seven carriers are Thai AirAsia, Thai Lion ...

Bloomberg Southwest Airlines Co is losing “big money” on every flight, raising the risk of worker furloughs in the longer-term despite billions of dollars in immediate aid from the US government. The biggest US discounter is “appreciative” of the package of loans and cash assistance approved by the Senate and awaiting a vote in the House of Representatives, CEO Gary ...

Bloomberg Singapore Airlines (SIA) shares fell after the carrier unveiled a plan to raise about S$8.8 billion ($6.2 billion) to contend with the devastating impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The company will issue S$5.3 billion in new stock at S$3 apiece, 54% lower than the last closing price last week, as well as convertible bonds, according to a statement. State ...