Air France-KLM has asked the French state for an immediate cash injection to help the troubled carrier stay afloat in the next 4 to 5 months, according to Les Echos newspaper. The cash injection, which could represent “many billions” of euros, would come on top of state-backed loans worth about E6b (US$6.5b) the company is currently negotiating with lenders, Les Echos said, without saying where it got the information. Friday, French finance minister Bruno Le Maire vowed to provide strong backing for Air France-KLM after the airline warned that without additional financing, it would need to raise liquidity in the 3 months through September, despite drastic cost-cutting measures that include slashing planned investments and accelerating the retirement portions of its fleet. <br/>
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Air France confirms that it had to postpone a flight from the Republic of Congo after the jet was damaged Sunday by a bullet fired by a gendarme. The incident happened at the airport in Pointe Noire, the country's second largest city, said Air France. An Airbus A330 was damaged and was unable to make a flight repatriating French citizens because of the outbreak of COVID-19. The flight was postponed for 24 hours so that a replacement airplane can arrive to carry out the flight, said the airline. The gendarme who fired a shot that pierced the sheet metal of the plane, was arrested and it being held in custody, according to an airport official. <br/>
Delta Air Lines was cut to junk at Fitch Ratings as part of a general downgrade of the US airline industry and its ability to service debt. The assessment adds urgency to the Trump administration’s desire to save the industry. Fitch lowered its rating on Delta’s debt to “BB+” from “BBB-” Friday and warned that another downgrade is possible as air travel suffers with the spread of the coronavirus. The airline does, however, have more financial flexibility than some rivals, Fitch said in an assessment of the industry. “Though Delta remains a stronger credit than its network peers, debt raised to sustain liquidity through the pandemic will drive credit metrics outside of a range supportive of investment-grade ratings at least through 2021 and likely into 2022,” Fitch said. <br/>