UK: Flag-carrier sets out its response to current world events
British Airways has confirmed it is to speed up its job-cutting program, and reduce the number of flights it operates, in response to the current world political situation.
The flag-carrier is aiming to cut capacity by around four per cent over the next two months, by using smaller planes and reducing the frequency of flights on some routes. Services being cut include the suspension of one daily flight from London to New York (six will remain), while plans for extra services to Newark, Toronto and Houston have been shelved.
In addition, the carrier previously stated that the last 3,000 job cuts from a total of 13,000 would take place next spring; now the redundancies will take effect by the end of September.
The BA chief executive Rod Eddington made the following statement: “There are clearly tough times ahead and experience has shown us that conserving cash is critical at these times. We have had the opportunity to plan our response on this occasion and do into this downturn a leaner, fitter company.”
Shares in BA were down 3p to 119p in early trading this morning.
