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Air NZ has changed its stance on expected job losses as a result of a "bleaker" coronavirus outlook, a union says. In an email to staff sent on Monday Air New Zealand CE Greg Foran said this week it would start the process of materially reducing its workforce due to the impact Covid-19 was having on the airline. "Clearly, we will be smaller for some time and we will need fewer staff," Foran said. "We expect that even in a year's time we will be at least 30% smaller than we are today." In an earlier email to staff sent on March 16 Foran said the airline's workforce of 12,500 would reduce by "up to" 30% - equating to about 3750 staff. E tū assistant national secretary Rachel Mackintosh said the change in wording to "at least 30%" reflected a worsening outlook for the airline. "They said that it's getting bleaker by the day," Mackintosh said. Foran's most recent email said the company's annual revenue was expected to fall from about $5.8b to less than $500m - a 90%reduction - as a result of Covid-19. "That's right - a drop of more than $5b dollars. This has the potential to be catastrophic for our business unless we take some decisive action."<br/>

Lufthansa is putting 27,000 of its 35,000 employees on short hours under a government support program that will ensure they get most of their pay while the virus outbreak reduces air traffic. The company also said in a news release Monday that top managers and board members would forego part of their pay for at least six months. The company said the short work hours agreed upon with employee representatives covers cabin and ground staff. A separate agreement with pilots has not yet been reached. Under the agreements, the airline will use a government program that pays 60% of the salary of employees, 67% for those with children, and the company will top them up to up to 90% of net salary. “We want to secure the jobs of our employees in these difficult and unusual times,” said the airlines' human resources chief, Michael Niggemann. “Our goal remains to avoid redundancies.” The German short-work program enabled companies to retain employees during a shutdown that is temporary and not the fault of the company. It was widely used during the 2009 recession. <br/>

Air Canada will cut capacity by as much as 90% next quarter and temporarily reduce its workforce by about 16,500 to reduce costs during the coronavirus crisis. The decision, effective on or around April 3, puts 15,200 unionized employees on “off-duty status” while 1,300 managers will also be furloughed, the airline said Monday. The company said the cuts were required because of the “dramatically smaller operations” resulting from travel restrictions worldwide. “It will help ensure that Air Canada can manage through this crisis that is affecting airlines everywhere,” CEO Calin Rovinescu said. The reductions, along with other measures, “will position us to restore regular operations as soon as the situation improves.” Canada’s biggest airline built a cash stash that puts it at an advantage in the current turmoil, analysts have said. The company has enough liquidity to meet financial obligations, TD Securities analyst Tim James wrote on March 27 after a call with management. “The conservative approach to how the balance sheet was managed prior to the downturn is benefiting the company today, and management is working towards exiting this crisis as strong as the company entered it,” James wrote.<br/>

Deputy PM Somkid Jatusripitak on Monday said the government will not allow ailing flag-carrier THAI to collapse and dismissed rumours of impending lay-offs as a result of the coronavirus crisis. Somkid said the government is ready to help the national airline, which was already beset with financial difficulties even before the pandemic began. While he insisted that THAI won't lay off any employees, the deputy premier urged the THAI board to come up with a business plan which proves that the company can still grow and expand after the crisis. "All rumours [about a lay-off] aren't true. News involving THAI that didn't come from the Finance Ministry should be considered false," he said. THAI employs about 20,000 staff, while its sister company Wingspan, which offers aviation-related services, has about 4,900 workers on its payroll. The deputy premier said the Finance Ministry wants to see a proposal which clearly outlines how THAI plans to review its management structure and business strategies, so it can remain competitive in the aviation market once the pandemic subsides.<br/>

SAS said Monday it was eyeing more cargo flights using regular passenger aircraft after its first such journey, from Stockholm to Chicago, in co-operation with a Danish logistics firm. The passenger travel industry has been brought to its knees by the coronavirus pandemic and SAS is the latest in a string of airlines around the world to offer cargo charter on passenger planes to boost revenue. A SAS group spokeswoman said the Chicago flight carried mainly medical gear, medicines and temperature-sensitive goods. “This was the first such flight,” she said. “We have other queries about this as well and are looking at it.” Around half the world’s air cargo normally travels in passenger planes rather than dedicated freighters, so the cancellation of passenger flights has led to a sharp reduction in cargo capacity. “SAS is currently getting a lot of inquiries about ad-hoc flights for passengers and cargo. We are looking at these requests and prioritising the traffic that is most needed to support both our society and our customers,” SAS Cargo CEO Leif Rasmussen said.<br/>

Airline SAS said Monday its CFO Torbjorn Wist will leave the company in September at the latest to take up the top finance position at shipping group Wallenius Wilhelmsen. The departure comes as the airline industry has plunged into crisis due to the rapid spread of the coronavirus, with the Scandinavian carrier forced to ground most of its fleet and temporarily lay off 90% of its staff. “This has not been an easy decision given the current market turmoil, but this is a result of a process that started well before COVID-19 became a global issue,” Wist said. “Let there be no doubt that my one and only priority in the coming months is to help ensure SAS’ continued role as a critical infrastructure provider in Scandinavia”.<br/>