Global Airlines brace for coronavirus impact
As coronavirus continues its spread outside of China, the global airline industry is recalibrating its response to a threat that could be its worst since the financial crisis a decade ago.
Deutsche Lufthansa AG, Germany’s flagship airline, said Wednesday it would start slashing costs in anticipation of a coming hit to revenues and profits from canceled flights to China, where the virus first emerged. Among other measures, it is offering its staff voluntary, unpaid leave.
Several big Asian carriers have done the same in recent days, in some cases resorting to more extreme measures. Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd., Hong Kong’s flag carrier, has asked all its staff to take three weeks of unpaid leave. Singapore Airlines Ltd. joined other Asian carriers on Wednesday in unveiling its own plan to begin trimming costs amid the downturn.
