A United Airlines passenger jet taxis at Newark Liberty International Airport on Dec. 6, 2019.CHRIS HELGREN/Reuters
United Airlines Holdings on Wednesday forecast a bigger drop in third-quarter passenger revenue than its own expectations and said it would look to cancel more flights until it sees a recovery in air travel.
United said it now expects an 85 per cent drop in passenger revenue, a closely watched performance measure in the airline industry, down from its previous estimate of 83 per cent year-over-year.
The No. 3 U.S. airline also expects third-quarter capacity to decrease about 70 per cent year-over-year, compared with its prior forecast of 65 per cent, despite seeing a moderate improvement in bookings for leisure travel in the United States and certain short-haul destinations in Latin America and the Caribbean in the two ended Sept. 7.
U.S. airlines have collectively been bleeding about $5 billion a month as 30 per cent of the planes remain parked amidst the coronavirus pandemic that prompted passengers to cancel their flights and seek refunds rather than book new travel.
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