ATLANTA — Delta Air Lines is pulling back on plans to ramp up flights as a second wave of COVID-19 outbreaks shakes customer confidence, as the airline continues to report multi-billion dollar losses.
CNBC reports that Delta on Tuesday reported a $5.7 billion loss in the quarter that ended in June. CEO Ed Bastian told the financial network that plans to add 1,000 flights in August have been scaled back to half that number, as the airline works to cut expenses and reposition as a smaller, more agile company.
“Demand has stalled as the virus has grown, particularly down here in the South, across the Sun Belt, coupled with the quarantine measures that are going in place in many of the Northern states,” Bastian told CNBC’s “Squawk Box.” “Those two factors are causing consumers to pause.”
In a report released to investors, Delta put its pre-tax loss for the quarter at $3.9 billion, and said revenue was down 91% from the same time period last year.
"Given the combined effects of the pandemic and associated financial impact on the global economy, we continue to believe that it will be more than two years before we see a sustainable recovery," Bastian said. "In this difficult environment, the strengths that are core to Delta’s business – our people, our brand, our network and our operational reliability – guide every decision we make, differentiating Delta with our customers and positioning us to succeed when demand returns.”
The report lauded new safety and health procedures undertaken by the airline, which are the result of a recent partnership with the Mayo Clinic.
Delta is also accelerating plans to retire large parts of its fleet, including the entire lineup of MD-88, MD-90, 777 and 737-700 airplanes, and some 767-300ER and A320 jets. Those planes should be pulled from Delta's fleet by the end of 2020. Dropping the older parts of the fleet is part of a plan to become a smaller, more efficient airline.
The airline is also launching voluntary separation and early retirement programs to reduce the size of its workforce and "rescale operations."
