U.S. airlines have officially been granted the right to suspend service to a total of 62 airports on the basis of reduced demand. Last month, I provided a list of destinations that the U.S. Department of Transportation provisionally approved...
Wow: Lufthansa Board Rejects German Bailout
The Lufthansa Supervisory Board has rejected Germany’s bailout package over new EU-imposed slot restrictions. On Monday, Germany and Lufthansa agreed in principle on a €9 billion aid package. This was not a free gift, but a 4% loan with many...
15 U.S. Airlines Plan To Suspend Service To 62 Airports (Full List)
The U.S. Department of Transportation has tentatively given 15 U.S. airlines the approval to drop service to 62 airports. The CARES Act requires that all airlines maintain service to all U.S. airports they served pre-COVID-19, but the DOT has...
Etihad’s Covert Flight To Israel
Despite no scheduled commercial service or even diplomatic relations between the United Arab Emirates and Israel, an Etihad A330-200 landed in Tel Aviv on Tuesday to deliver coronavirus aid to Palestinians. The aircraft, painted all white, bore the registration...
Nigeria Impounds British Jet After Unauthorized Commercial Flight
Nigeria has impounded a British-registered jet after alleging the airline operated a commercial flight in contravention of of a government ban on all such flights due to COVID-19. Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, announced on Sunday that a...
United Restricts Employee Standby Travel To Ease Onboard Crowding Tensions
United Airlines is limiting the number of employee standbys it will board in order to encourage “social distancing” onboard. Airline employees are generally allowed to travel on a non-revenue, space-available (NRSA) basis on any flight their airline operates. Sometimes...
The Airline Industry Is In “Good” Shape? What Shape Is That?
With bookings down 98%, planes still flying empty, and most of the world off-limits, to say that airlines are struggling is an understatement. Buoyed temporarily by taxpayer dollars, airlines groan on, but safe and healthy? Not a chance. President...
Lufthansa Remains A Political Pawn In Bailout Debate
Another week has flown by with Germany and Lufthansa still unable to come to an agreement on a bailout. The unresolved issue remains how much control Germany should exert over Lufthansa. Yesterday, German Economy Minister Peter Altmaier said his...
Delta Suspends Service To 11 Airports For “Health” Reasons
Delta Air Lines is suspending service to several stations, citing health concerns as the primary reason. How convenient that all of the airports happen to be in metropolitan airports not too far from larger Delta stations… While Delta concedes...
Los Angeles May Force Five Star Hotels To House Homeless
Using its emergency powers, Los Angeles may “commandeer” hotels that refuse to take homeless vouchers during the pandemic. Luxury hotels like the InterContinental Downtown and Ritz Carlton have pushed back on pleas to house the homeless. Project Roomkey is...
Grim Days At United Airlines: Forced Vacations, Huge Layoffs, No Severance
As United Airlines fights for survival, the “other shoe dropped” yesterday: it will not just be frontline employees who feel the pain. Kate Gebo, United Executive Vice President of Human Resources, laid out the news to employees. The extended memo,...
United Airlines Has More Pilots Than Daily Passengers: Staggering Job Cuts Loom
United Airlines is hardly unique having more pilots than daily passengers, but it is the first airline that has indicated how it might handle pilot job cuts once CARES Act funding dries up this autumn. United Airlines Hints That...
Exclusive: United Airlines Cuts Compensation Limits By Up To 85%
Those $10,000 offers to take a later flight when your flight is full? Another relic of the past. United Airlines will now limit voluntary denied boarding compensation to a maximum flight credit of $2,500, a 75% reduction. It is...
New Aircraft Boarding Procedure At United Airlines
Through at least the end of May, United Airlines is avoiding zone boarding and will instead board by rows. United Airlines has used zone boarding for years. After the merger with Continental, it briefly tried boarding by rows (as...
Lufthansa Considers Strategic Bankruptcy
As Lufthansa negotiates for a huge government bailout, it is also exploring bankruptcy as another path toward sustainability. The Süddeutsche Zeitung reports that Lufthansa is considering filing for bankruptcy. It is quickly burning through its remaining cash and finds...
Airbus Warns Of Steep Production Cuts, Job Losses
Any hopes of a quick recovery and return to the old normal have been dashed, with Airbus now weighing painful cuts as it fights to adapt and survive. Airbus CEO Warns Of Painful Cuts Guillaume Faury, CEO of Airbus,...
German Government Debates Micromanaging Lufthansa
Lufthansa is on the cusp of receiving a massive bailout from four European governments. But with money comes coercion and the debate now shifts to how much control should be asserted over the German airline group. Lufthansa Group Poised...
United Airlines Announces 13 Additional International Route Suspensions
United Airlines has revealed 12 additional international routes that will not return this summer as part of its plan to gradually roll out schedule reductions. Seasonal Routes United Has Already Suspended Last week, I reported that United would suspend...
United Airlines Removes Lie-Flat Beds From Premium Transcontinental Flights
With only one potential exception, United Airlines will remove the “premium” from premium transcontinental and use 737-800s on flights that used to have guaranteed lie-flat seating in business class during the month of May. United: This Is Temporary And...
Flight Attendants Demand U.S. Government Force All Passengers To Wear Masks
A union representing flight attendants for Alaska, Frontier, Spirit, and United has sent a note to the Trump Administration urging that passengers be mandated to wear masks while traveling on commercial flights. The letter comes from the Association of...
