By David Shepardson and Tracy Rucinski
WASHINGTON/CHICAGO (Reuters) – Delta Air Lines said on Saturday it plans to soon announce additional schedule changes to its European flights after the Trump administration said it was expanding travel restrictions to Britain and Ireland.
U.S. Vice President Mike Pence said the new restrictions will begin Monday at midnight and will bar most non-U.S. citizens from entering the United States who have been in the U.K. or Ireland within the last 14 days.
They do not bar flights to and from the U.S. or Americans and permanent residents from travel.
Washington first imposed restrictions on China and expanded them this week to continental Europe, prompting U.S. airlines to cut numerous flights and scramble to shore up capital and save costs.
Among cost-cutting measures, U.S. airlines are offering employees voluntary unpaid leaves of absence in an effort to better match staffing with flights.
Delta and its pilots’ union, who are in contract negotiations, said on Saturday they had reached an agreement over coronavirus-related sick leave and managing overstaffing in April with partially paid schedules.
“Our Contract 2019 goals remain important, but rst, we must deal with the crisis at hand – helping our Company mitigate the eects of COVID-19 while protecting our pilots,” Ryan Schnitzler, chairman of the Air Line Pilots Association’s Delta group, said in a message to members after a special conference call to discuss the impact of the virus.
In a statement, Delta called the collaboration “key to our success in this unprecedented environment.”
The airline said Friday it would cut capacity by 40% in the next few months — the largest reduction in its history — and eliminate nearly all flights to continental Europe for the next 30 days. It will also park up to 300 aircraft.
United Airlines and American Airlines also announced new cuts to European service on Friday. Major U.S. airlines confirmed on Friday they had been in talks with the White House and Congress about financial assistance.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce late Friday called for urgent action, calling on the U.S. government to “turn next to a package to assist impacted employers… No business should go bankrupt because of a temporary loss in revenue as a result of the coronavirus.”
Airlines are reeling from a plunge in bookings and traffic, as the fast-spreading coronavirus pandemic prompts travel restrictions and event cancellations around the world. [nL1N2B636C]
(Reporting by David Shepardson and Tracy Rucinski; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and David Gregorio)
