United Airlines and JetBlue Airways announced on Wednesday a cut in their flight schedules due to passenger worry about the coronavirus.
Airlines around the globe have cut international flights but this is the first time in the U.S. that domestic travel has been impacted by a drop in demand.
United plans to trim their schedules in the U.S. and Canada by 10% and international flights by 20% beginning in April.
Also disclosed was a hiring freeze, a voluntary unpaid leave of absence, reduced work schedules, and deferred managerial pay raises.
CEO Oscar Munoz said that the coronavirus crisis continues to evolve rapidly for the airline industry, and that there will be continued scrutiny of booking trends.
JetBlue announced a 5% reduction and said they are looking at ways to preserve cash.
Executives from most airlines met with Trump and Pence on Wednesday to discuss the impact of the virus on travel, and how to coordinate activity between the government and the industry.
Trump said he didn’t believe the industry would need a bailout, and that he believes flying is safe.
“Where these people are flying, it’s safe to fly,” he said.
CNN carried this story.
