SkyWest posts $26m loss, ramps up Embraer fleet

SkyWest Airlines reported a $26m loss in the coronavirus-marked second quarter as demand slumped and the airline significantly reduced its network. Operating revenue was $350m, down from $744m in the same period one year ago, the airline tells analysts on its quarterly earnings call. “Covid-19 continues to cause unprecedented disruption across the airline industry,” SkyWest CE Chip Childs said Thursday. “Undoubtedly the next few months will be turbulent.” The regional carrier, which operates flights through codeshare arrangements with American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and Alaska Airlines, had 471 aircraft at the end of the second quarter, down from 484 at the end of the first quarter. It expects to shrink further to 450 aircraft by the end of 2020. Chief operations officer Wade Steel says the coronavirus crisis accelerated the carrier’s fleet replacement programme, as it moves more toward Embraer 175 regional jets. By mid-2022, the airline will have 213 of the type in service, up from 156 at the end of 2019, he says.<br/>