Will Airlines Have Their Own Bailout?
July 26, 2009 by Mark Ellis
Filed under Business
The recession has been brutal for many businesses but the airline industry has suffered dramatically from soft ticket demand and unpredictable gas prices. Considering the dire straits that many of the world’s most prominent airlines are facing, a federal bailout for the airline industry may not be too far in the future.
Airlines typically look forward to the second quarter as a time of the year when travelers most frequently travel by airplane to get to their exotic vacation destinations. However, this year’s outcome has been very disappointing for the airline industry, as the recession, combined with a global swine flu fear, continues to take its toll.
Almost every major airline has had to take dramatic cost-cutting steps in order to stay afloat, shedding thousands of jobs just to break even. Analysts have hinted at the need for the airline industry to take in billions of dollars worth of capital in order to keep its planes in the air. A general slowdown in the amount of money investors are pouring into the airline industry may make a federal bailout all but necessary for global and domestic transportation.
Image: Flickr
