American Airlines posts mammoth first quarter loss

Wednesday, 01 May, 2020 0

American Airlines posted a huge $2.2 billion loss in the first three months of the year.

It is the largest quarterly loss for nearly 12 years.

Revenue plunged nearly 20% compared to 2019.

The world’s biggest carrier has suffered a sharp decline in passenger traffic due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Last year it posted a quarterly profit of $185 million.

US air travel is down about 95% due to the various travel restrictions and stay at home orders in place around the country.

"Never before has our airline, or our industry, faced such a significant challenge," American’s CEO Doug Parker said in an earnings call.

It has taken government aid to guarantee salaries for its huge workforce of 130,000 until at least September, although thousands have volunteered for unpaid or partially-paid leave.

"Our sole focus is to make sure we have sufficient liquidity," said CFO Derek Kerr.

The airline said it had $6.8 billion of available liquidity by the end of Q1 and expects to have about $11 billion in liquidity by the second quarter thanks to government aid and loans, and cost savings from lower fuel prices.

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Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.

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