United Airlines Cutting Flights By Half In Response To COVID-19

CHICAGO — United Airlines will cut its flights by half through at least May as cancellations mount and bookings plummet due to the new coronavirus outbreak sweeping the country, the company's CEO and president said in a joint statement Monday.

On Thursday, CEO Oscar Munoz and President J. Scott Kirby had announced a 10 percent reduction in domestic flights and a 20 percent cut in international flights. But they now say they are taking even more aggressive steps to manage the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on the company.

"In just the last few days, the impact of the coronavirus has really hit home and disrupted the daily routines of hundreds of millions of people in the United States and around the world," Munoz and Kirby said. "State and local governments continue to close schools, encourage people to avoid bars and restaurants, and cancel more large gatherings. This weekend, President Trump announced new travel restrictions for the United Kingdom and Ireland. Watching this unfold, you won't be surprised to hear that the impact of the coronavirus on our business has also gotten quite a bit worse."

United said March is typically its busiest month, but this year the airline has seen 1 million fewer customers and is projecting about $1.5 billion in lost revenue.

"The bad news is that it's getting worse," the company's leaders said. "We expect both the number of customers and revenue to decline sharply in the days and weeks ahead."

The company has also imposed a hiring freeze, cut corporate officers' pay by 50 percent, and is in talks with union leadership to reduce payrolls "in a way that minimizes what we know will be painful for all of us."

"Let us be clear: These are not the only next steps," the company said, raising the prospect of even more drastic cuts if the situation deteriorates further.

Union leaders called the coronavirus outbreak "extraordinary" and "unparalleled in our lifetimes," saying it could be even greater than the disruption caused by the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

"Air and rail carriers simply have no playbook for what is happening to our industry," said a statement by Sito Pantoja, vice president of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers transportation union. "Anyone who tells you what the future holds in the coming days, weeks or months is simply guessing. Front-line air and rail workers, industry CEOs, Wall Street bankers and politicians are all in the same exact position — nobody knows exactly what will come next. But pretending a crisis does not exist is not a successful strategy."

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers represents about 28,000 United Airlines employees.

IAM union leaders said they are in talks with state and federal governments and are working to "protect our members from the fallout the virus has created."

"However, just as no amount of care we can take can guarantee we will not catch the virus, I cannot promise you there won't be some short-term pain ahead," Pantoja said.

United Airlines has about 15,000 employees in the Chicago area and typically operates almost 600 daily flights out of O'Hare International Airport, according to a company fact sheet.

In a letter to union members, IAM District 141 President Mike Klemm said the company's financial situation was "significantly worse than the days and weeks following 9/11." But Klemm praised the company's leadership.

"The IAM's current relationship with Oscar Munoz and Scott Kirby is solid, and there exists a level of trust between both parties that we value," he said. "It is because of this relationship that the IAM will have input on any decisions that are made that will impact IAM members at United."

Ken Diaz, president of the United Airlines chapter of the Association of Flight Attendants, planned to address union membership at 2:30 p.m. Monday. You can watch it here. The AFA represents about 55,000 United Airlines flight attendants.

"None of this 'feels' right, and, given the last several years of success, it's almost impossible to fathom that the fortunes of our industry have seemingly turned on a dime, almost overnight," Diaz said.