WASHINGTON: US airlines mentioned on Monday that leisure bookings are rising and offered some of the first concrete signs that the worst may be over for the sector because the coronavirus pandemic ground air travel to a near halt a yr in the past.
Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines, and JetBlue Airways every mentioned first-quarter revenue would decline at the low end or less than previously forecast as vaccine rollouts accelerate and more individuals plan holidays or visits to friends and relatives
Talking at a JP Morgan conference, Delta Chief Executive Ed Bastian mentioned there are “real glimmers of hope”.
Bastian mentioned he was “cautiously optimistic” that the airline could halt its cash burn this spring and that it could use cash for aircraft purchases within the second quarter.
More than 1.3 million passengers were screened in US airports on Friday and Sunday, according to Transportation Security Administration data, the highest number since the pandemic crushed air travel in 2020.
Delta expects its first-quarter income decline to be on the low end of its forecast for a 60 to 65 percent decline from the same quarter in 2019, before the onset of the pandemic.
Southwest forecast lower cash burn within the first quarter on Monday and a lower decline in working revenue for February and March than previously forecast.
JetBlue also forecasts a slowing pace in its first-quarter revenue drop, projecting a decline of between 61 and 64 percent, compared with the same period in 2019. It had previously forecast a 65 to 70 percent fall in revenue.
