United Airlines hosts signing ceremony officially debuting in-house apprenticeship program
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner will join United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby Tuesday at the signing ceremony officially debuting Calibrate, the airlines in-house apprenticeship program, and grand opening of its Technical Operations Recruitment Center at Houstonโs Bush Intercontinental Airport.
US air travel rises to highest levels yet since pandemic hit
Across the United States, air travel is recovering more quickly from the depths of the pandemic, and it is showing up in longer airport security lines and busier traffic on airline websites. "Our last three weeks have been the best three weeks since the pandemic hit, and each week has been better than the one prior,โ American Airlines CEO Doug Parker said Monday. Shares of the four biggest U.S. carriers hit their highest prices in more than a year. Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian said Monday that bookings began picking up five or six weeks ago. Since the pandemic hit, air travel has picked up a few times โ mostly around holidays โ only to drop back down.
Airline CEOs, Biden officials consider green-fuel breaks
Airline officials are talking to the Biden administration about support for incentives to use cleaner fuels for airplanes. United Airlines said CEO Scott Kirby asked administration officials to support incentives for sustainable aviation fuel and technology to remove carbon from the atmosphere. A United Nations aviation group has concluded that biofuels will remain a tiny source of aviation fuel for several years. Some environmentalists would prefer the Biden administration to impose tougher emissions standards on aircraft rather than create breaks for biofuels. โWe stand ready to work in partnership with the Biden administration.โ
United: Small electric air taxis will zip people to airports
United Airlines says it could be using small electric-powered aircraft to take customers to the airport within a few years. United said Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021, that it will buy up to 200 small aircraft capable of helicopter-style takeoffs and landings from startup Archer. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)CHICAGO โ United Airlines said Wednesday it will buy up to 200 small electric air taxis to help customers in urban areas get to the airport. United estimated the air taxis could shuttle people from Hollywood to Los Angeles International Airport at about half the carbon emissions per passenger. Chicago-based United portrayed the move as part of a broader plan to invest in technology behind cleaner modes of air travel.
United Airlines shares lose altitude after weak 1Q forecast
FILE - In this Oct. 15, 2020, file photo, a United Airlines airplane takes off over another United plane on the runway at San Francisco International Airport in San Francisco. United also gave a slightly more pessimistic first-quarter outlook than rival Delta Air Lines did just last week. The January-through-March period is a slow time for air travel even in normal years, but United said first-quarter revenue will be down 65% to 70% from a year ago. That prediction was five points worse than Delta forecast and implied no real improvement over Unitedโs fourth quarter. Except for around Thanksgiving and Christmas, U.S. air travel has stubbornly remained down more than 60% from a year earlier.
United Airlines posts $1.9 billion loss in pandemic-laden 4Q
FILE - In this Oct. 15, 2020, file photo, a United Airlines airplane takes off over another United plane on the runway at San Francisco International Airport in San Francisco. United lost $7.1 billion in 2020, an amount exceeded only in 2005, when bankruptcy-related costs pushed the company to a $21 billion loss. That was worse than the $6.62 per share loss predicted, on average, by 19 analysts in a FactSet survey. Revenue tumbled to $3.41 billion, nearly matching the $3.42 billion that was forecast by analysts. Shares of United Airlines Holdings Inc. rose 1% to $45.18 in regular trading before the financial results were released.
United loses $1.8 billion, aims to shift focus to recovery
Empty ticketing counters are seen in Terminal 1 at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2020. United Airlines, which furloughed 13,000 employees this month, is expected to report a large third-quarter loss as the coronavirus pandemic continues to batter air travel. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
United loses $1.8 billion, aims to shift focus to recovery
United Airlines, which furloughed 13,000 employees this month, is expected to report a large third-quarter loss as the coronavirus pandemic continues to batter air travel. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)United Airlines financial hole grew deeper over the summer as a modest recovery in air travel slowed down, pushing the carrier to a loss of $1.84 billion in the typically strong third quarter. The results from United, and those issued a day earlier by Delta Air Lines, reinforced the damage that the pandemic is doing to a major industry. Seven months into the worst of the coronavirus impact in the U.S., air travel remains down 65% from a year ago. United, Delta and American rely on business and international travelers for much of their revenue.
United says it will drop widely scorned ticket-change fees
United's move will put pressure on American Airlines and Delta Air Lines to drop their change fees, also $200 on domestic travel. Delta and American said they are waiving change fees for travel affected by the virus through the year's end. Southwest Airlines does not charge change fees, a policy which its CEO says has helped it gain more business. United said that it eliminated change fees for people who buy a standard or premium economy ticket for U.S. travel. United also said that it will extend a broad waiver of change fees including for international travel through Dec. 31.
American, Southwest add to US airline industry's 2Q losses
That pushed the combined loss of the nation's four biggest airlines to more than $10 billion in just three months. Between them, American and Southwest carried 15.4 million passengers from April through June. Earlier, Delta Air Lines reported a $5.7 billion loss that was worsened by writing down investments in global airline partners who have filed for bankruptcy protection, and United lost $1.6 billion. American, based in Fort Worth, Texas, reported a loss of $2.07 billion, compared with a year-ago profit of $662 million. Seattle-based Alaska Airlines said it lost $214 million compared with a $262 million profit a year earlier.
United Airlines: Passengers will have to wear masks inside airport in addition to on the plane
United Airlines says its face mask requirement now extends to ticket counters and airport lounges. United and all other major U.S. airlines already require passengers to wear masks during flights. Passengers will have to wear face masks at ticket counters, baggage-claim areas and in its airport lounges or risk being banned from flights. Face mask โ We are extending our face mask requirement to airports. โ United Airlines (@united) July 22, 2020United Airlines executives also said Wednesday that travel will rise when the number of new coronavirus cases drops but the airlineโs revenue will stall around 50% of pre-pandemic levels until there is a vaccine.
Countries eager for tourists, Tokyo Disneyland reopens
Travelers push their luggage at the departure terminal of the Rafik Hariri International Airport in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, July 1, 2020. Capri has 98% of its stores open in the Asia and EMEA regions. EgyptAir said around 2,000 passengers left the Cairo international airport on 14 international flights, the first regular flights since the coronavirus outbreak. International travelers have been able to fly into Greece since June 15, but only to Athens or Thessaloniki. United plans to fly 52% of its year-ago domestic schedule in August, but only 25% of its previous international flights.
American booking full flights next week; Big Lots still busy
Travelers wear mask as they wait at the American Airlines ticket counter in Terminal 3 at O'Hare International Airport Tuesday, June 16, 2020, in Chicago. Beginning June 16 at American Airlines and June 18 at United Airlines, all passengers and crew members will be required to wear masks to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
American booking full flights next week; Big Lots still busy
This is likely to involve the appointment of administrators.TRAVEL & LEISURE: American Airlines will start booking flights to full capacity starting next Wednesday. American said Friday that it will continue to notify customers of full flights and let them change flights at no cost. Since April, American has said it limits bookings to leave about half of middle seats open. Delta, Southwest, Alaska and JetBlue say they block middle seats or limit capacity. United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby has said social distancing is impossible on planes -- even with empty middle seats, people are less than six feet from each other.
American Airlines will book flights to full capacity
DALLAS American Airlines will start booking flights to full capacity next week, ending any effort to promote social distancing on its planes while the United States sets records for new reported cases of the coronavirus. Since April, American has limited bookings to about 85% of a plane's capacity by leaving about half the middle seats open. As more people continue to travel, customers may notice that flights are booked to capacity starting July 1, American said. If someone contracts the COVID-19 virus on a 100% full plane, theyre going to sue American Airlines, Harteveldt said. American Airlines spokesman Ross Feinstein said the airline has been considering booking to full capacity for a few weeks as passenger numbers have risen.