Delta Air Lines reported its third-quarter performance, and as the health crisis continues, the carrier reports huge losses amind limited flight capacities.
Delta Air Lines on Tuesday has reported its performance in the recent quarter, with huge losses of $5.4 billion. It comes as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to hamper demand for air travel.
Delta’s Third-Quarter
For the third-quarter overall performance, scoping the months of July-September, Delta said it lost $5.4 billion. Particularly, its operating loss for that period amounted to $2.1 billion, not including special items like payment to workers exiting the company. Shares for the company tumbled by three percent on the morning of the posting.
Delta Air Lines posted massive quarterly losses yet again, and the company is warning investors "it may be two years or more" for air travel demand to return to normal. https://t.co/7Kdielsfi5
— CNN Business (@CNNBusiness) October 14, 2020
Delta’s loss surpassed the Wall Street analysts’ forecast, CNN Business reports. The carrier’s revenue is 79 percent down from last year’s same quarter. However, it improved, coming from an 88 percent slide in the second quarter. Additionally, the company expects to lower its daily bleeding to $10 million a day by December. It even hoped to see profits by next spring.
Reduced Capacity
USA Today also reports that passenger revenues for Delta dropped by 83 percent for the third quarter. It comes as it lowered its capacity for its flights, particularly, 63 percent down from the same quarter one year.
Furthermore, Delta also said it doesn’t have to furlough flight attendants and ground employees. Currently, the carrier communicates with the pilot’s union to nudge axing 1,700 pilots by November.
Improvement in the Quarter
Delta chief executive Ed Bastian said that the recent results “demonstrate the magnitude of the pandemic” on the company’s business. However, Bastian said that “seeing a path of progressive improvement in our revenues” encouraged them further.
The carrier’s president, Glen Hauenstein, noted the company manages to restore flights to meet customer’s needs. But it also has to tiptoe with limited capacity as the health crisis continues.
Bastian also stated that the company’s actions “to take care of our people, simplify our fleet, improve the customer experience, and strengthen our brand” will allow the company for an accelerated recovery from the pandemic.
