Delta Air Lines and United Airlines have been criticised by the National Rifle Association for ‘shameful political cowardice’ after they became the latest companies to cut ties with the gun lobby group.
Delta and United said they will no longer give NRA members discounted fares as a growing number of corporations distance themselves from the NRA after the recent shooting rampage at a Florida high school.
Delta tweeted: "Delta is reaching out to the NRA to let them know we will be ending their contract for discounted rates through our group travel program. We will be requesting that the NRA remove our information from their website."
United issued an almost identical statement.
The NRA said its members are not responsible for local and federal laws or failures in the mental health system which made it possible for former school student Nikolas Cruz to legally obtain an AR-15 assault rifle.
"Some corporations have decided to punish NRA membership in a shameful display of political and civic cowardice. In time, these brands will be replaced by others who recognize that patriotism and determined commitment to Constitutional freedoms are characteristics of a marketplace they very much want to serve," an NRA statement said.
Since the weekend a number of businesses have ditched partnerships with the NRA following a move by Enterprise Holdings Inc, which pulled NRA discount programmes from its three car-rental brands.
These include Hertz, while Wyndham Hotels and Best Western hotels said they are no longer affiliated with the NRA.
Other major brands such as Amazon, Google and Apple are feeling the heat from their customers to cut all ties with the gun advocacy group.
The companies all offer streaming service of NRA TV channels.
Tourism to Florida could also be affected following the recent shootings.
One shooting survivor urged college students to boycott Florida for spring break ‘unless gun legislation is passed’.
"These politicians won’t listen to us so maybe they’ll listen to the billion-dollar tourism industry in FL," student David Hogg tweeted.
It has been re-tweeted nearly 100,000 times.
