TSA screened more than 1 MILLION passengers on Sunday - the first time since the pandemic hit the US in mid-March
The US Transportation Security Administration said it screened more than 1 million airline passengers on Sunday for the first time since mid-March.
The number, 1.03 million, is still about 60 per cent lower than the same day last year, but is a dramatic rise from the collapse in air travel demand caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Screening fell to as little as 87,000 in a single day in April. The previous high was 1.26 million screened on March 16.
US airlines are collectively burning more than $5billion in cash a month and have failed to date to convince Congress to approve a new $25billion bailout that would have kept more than 32,000 workers on the payroll for another six months.
American Airlines furloughed 19,000 workers, while United Airlines furloughed 13,000 workers.
The US Transportation Security Administration said it screened more than 1 million airline passengers on Sunday for the first time since mid-March
Screening (pictured in May 2020) fell to as little as 87,000 in a single day in April. The previous high was 1.26 million screened on March 16
Cities will lose a number of daily flights and non-stop options, Cowen analyst Helane Becker said. 'Service to small communities will decline pretty dramatically,' she added.
That threat has resonated with some lawmakers even as the bailout request partly fell victim to broader political turmoil in a bitterly divided Washington.
And an uncertain recovery has not helped the airlines' case. Industry experts expect a slight improvement in domestic demand over the winter holidays from current levels, but it will remain far below last year's volumes, and higher-margin business and international travel remain severely depressed.
Daily passengers at US airports have swung from record highs in 2019 to dramatic lows in 2020, TSA data shows.
'Right now airline traffic is equal to where it was in the 1970s,' said Becker. 'And the industry has a balance sheet that is 2019.'
Staff for the top Democrats and Republicans on the House and Senate committees overseeing airlines have been working to try to reach agreement on a potential standalone airline bill, but the airlines are not optimistic any bill will be approved before the November 3 presidential election.
A previous airline payroll support program expired on September 30. At some point, airlines may shift messaging to seeking new government funds to bring workers back.
Airlines for America, a trade group representing American Airlines, United, Delta Air Lines and others have said passenger volumes are down about 64 per cent, including 62 per cent domestically and 79 per cent internationally.
US airlines are operating 48 per cent fewer flights than a year ago and still have nearly one-third of their fleet idled, the group added.
The TSA statement on Monday also said it is adopting new measures to make security screening safer, including installing credential authentication devices at some checkpoints enabling passengers to insert IDs directly into a card reader.
A traveler wears a mask as he checks his flight status information at United Airlines self ticket counter at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago on Wednesday
New CT scanners at some checkpoints also often allow officers to check items without having to open a carry-on bag.
The financial hole for United Airlines grew deeper with the carrier losing $1.84billion in the typically strong third quarter.
The airline said Wednesday that revenue plummeted 78 per cent from a year earlier. The loss was worse than analysts had expected.
United executives believe investors are less interested in current losses and more interested in what the airline plans to do to improve its competitive position when travel recovers.
CEO Scott Kirby said the airline has 'successfully executed our initial crisis strategy' and is ready to move on.
'Even though the negative impact of COVID-19 will persist in the near term, we are now focused on positioning the airline for a strong recovery that will allow United to bring our furloughed employees back to work and emerge as the global leader in aviation,' Kirby said in a statement.
United began furloughing workers on October 1, and several thousand other employees took severance packages to leave voluntarily.
The airline has cut flights more aggressively than some of its closest competitors in a bid to align costs with dramatically lower ticket sales.
And United is borrowing billions of dollars from the federal government and private lenders to outlast the pandemic. The airline ended September with $19.4billion in liquidity.
United met a goal it set in July to reduce cash losses to $25million a day, down from $40million a day in the second quarter, and roughly in line with Delta, which reported a $5.4billion quarterly loss on Tuesday.
At current revenue, United has enough cash to last nearly 21 months - longer than American Airlines but not as long as Southwest or Delta - according to calculations by Raymond James analysts.
United, Delta and American rely on business and international travelers for much of their revenue. Those high-fare customers, however, are expected to return more slowly than leisure travelers booking trips closer to home. The airline industry is pushing governments to test travelers for COVID-19 instead of closing borders or imposing long quarantine requirements on international travelers.
Airlines also are trying to lure passengers by requiring face masks, stepping up their cleaning of plane cabins, and citing industry claims that transmission of the new coronavirus on flights is rare.
Some, like Delta and Southwest, leave middle seats open to put more space between passengers. United and American do not.