The union representing Southwest flight attendants on Tuesday rejected management's call for negotiated pay cuts to avoid furloughs and renewed calls for more airline aid from Washington. On Monday, Southwest CE Gary Kelly said he was asking unions to agree to pay cuts in order to prevent furloughs and layoffs through 2021 as the industry struggles to stem losses from the coronavirus pandemic. US airlines had pleaded for another $25b in federal payroll support before a ban on job and pay cuts under a first package expired on Sept. 30. Lawmakers have so far failed to agree on a second COVID-19 stimulus plan and some airlines have started furloughing thousands of employees, a move Southwest has so far sought to avoid. But TWU Local 556 President Lyn Montgomery said that before “cracking open the contracts that took us decades to obtain,” the union wants to ensure that no stone has been left unturned, noting that flight attendant concessions may not have a large material impact on Southwest’s daily cash burn. <br/>
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The long-haul arm of Malaysia's flagship budget airline, AirAsia X, has proposed restructuring its debt and reducing its issued share capital to avoid liquidation and pave way for fresh capital, it said in a late bourse filing on Tuesday. AirAsia X said in a separate statement it is facing severe liquidity constraints to meet debt and other financial commitments and with no return to normalcy in sight, "an imminent default of contractual commitments will precipitate a potential liquidation of the airline". A major debt restructuring and a renegotiation of its financial obligations, as well as revised level of operations, are prerequisites for any raising of fresh equity and debt which will be required to restart the airline, it said. The group is seeking to restructure approximately RM63.5b (US$15.30b) of debt and for any balance to be waived, the affiliate of AirAsia Group said. AirAsia X said unaudited records as at Jun 30 show it had a deficit in shareholders' equity of RM960m, and its current liabilities of RM3.38b exceeded current assets of RM1.39b. The group also proposed reducing its issued share capital by 90% and consolidating every 10 existing ordinary shares into one share. It has appointed board member Lim Kian Onn, a chartered accountant and former banker, as deputy chairman to lead the restructuring. The airline's restructuring plan comes despite efforts taken to control costs, including grounding all scheduled flights, salary cuts and retrenchment across the group.<br/>
Ryanair has warned that if Ireland's Covid-19 restrictions for air travel aren't changed the Government will inflict the "single biggest act of self-harm" to the economy since the trade war with Britain in the 1930s. Its CE Eddie Wilson is to appear at the Oireachtas Transport Committee today and a submission from Ryanair also renews the airline's warning that its Cork and Shannon bases will close this winter if the Government doesn't ease travel rules. The airline will join others like the DAA at the Oireachtas Transport Committee today to brief TDs and Senators on the devastating impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the aviation sector. In its submission, Ryanair accuses the Government of adopting a "failed" 14-day quarantine policy and cutting Ireland off from the rest of Europe with a "failed" green list that currently allows unrestricted travel to four "tiny" countries. It argues that Government policy saw the collapse of the 2020 summer season. It warns a lack of action will "see Ryanair significantly reduce its capacity in Dublin, close its Cork and Shannon base, cut capacity to Kerry and Knock, wiping out connections to the UK and the EU to Irish regional airports." It adds: "With no clarity for summer [2021] on travel restrictions or incentives which are clearly set out in the Government Aviation Recovery Taskforce Report, the implications for next summer will be devastating for Irish tourism, which supports 325,000 jobs."<br/>
A team led by experienced industry executive Erik Braathen is planning to launch an airline in Norway that reflects “the new economic reality”. The announcement comes as incumbent operators Norwegian and SAS struggle amid the coronavirus crisis – but also on the same day that pan-European low-cost operator Wizz Air announced it would establish a base at Oslo and commence domestic flights in the country. Amid this challenging environment, the new carrier expects to begin flights in the first half of 2021 with an initial fleet of five Airbus A320 or Boeing 737 aircraft, and serve domestic and European sectors. “We believe it is the right time to start a new airline,” Braathen states. “We will be able to lease modern aircraft for a reasonable price, hire top-tier staff, and build a digital company with less complexity in order to lower cost and achieve profitability with fewer airplanes. We will be offering passengers competitive prices and an efficient and easy digital journey from ticket purchase to destination arrival.”<br/>