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The Dutch government on Saturday put on hold its plan to bail out KLM, the Dutch arm of Air France, after pilots rejected a wage-freeze until 2025, Finance Minister Wopke Hoekstra said. KLM had been due to receive a E3.4b package, including E1b in direct loans. from the government to help it cope with the damage from the coronavirus pandemic. “I find it very disappointing, but this way we cannot move forward with the loan now,” Hoekstra said. The pilots’ union argued that it had already agreed to a freeze until March 2022, and could not now change that agreement at the last minute. Ahead of the government announcement, KLM CEO Pieter Elbers had said that “without this loan, KLM will not make it through these challenging times”. He said KLM would not immediately go bankrupt but that its reserves “cannot last more than a few months”. In a letter to parliament, Hoekstra left the door open for the bailout if all KLM employees agreed to the five-year wage freeze. “It is up to KLM and the unions to ensure that they meet the government’s demands after all,” he said, adding that the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic had changed expectations about how soon airlines could bounce back. “The outlook is sombre, that makes it all the more important to have a good restructuring programme in place to work towards KLM’s long-term recovery,” he wrote. Unions representing ground and cabin crews have agreed to the extended wage freeze, which is set to last as long as the airline receives government support.<br/>

The Indonesian government has outlined plans to merge nine state-owned tourism companies, including Garuda Indonesia, in a move to maximise operational efficiencies. The country’s state-owned enterprises ministry states that the nine entities will be merged under a single holding company. Apart from Garuda Indonesia, other state-owned enterprises that will be folded into the holding company include airport operators Angkasa Pura I and Angkasa Pura II; hotelier Inna Hotels and Resorts; as well as department store Sarinah. The new holding company hopes to spur the various enterprises to implement cross-sector initiatives, thus increasing competitiveness and strengthening further funding capacity. In the longer term, the ministry hopes this would improve tourism performance. Each enterprise has also been asked to create taskforces to work out how best to collaborate and cooperate with one another. Details on the exact timeline of the new company are scant, with some indications that the legal framework could be ironed out by early next year.<br/>

Aeroflot saw quarter-on-quarter rises in passenger demand and revenue during the three months ended 30 September, underpinned by strong domestic demand. Although Q3 revenue was down 67% on last year’s, at Rb55.2b ($695m), the carrier notes that load factors and yields were at “comparable levels”. Still, its Q3 net loss of Rb23.3b compares with a Rb21.4b profit in the same period of 2019. “In Q3 2020 Aeroflot Group carried 10.1m passengers, 3.8m of whom flew with Aeroflot airline,” it notes. “Taking into consideration all the operational and economic challenges currently facing the aviation sector, our gradual restoration of passenger traffic, driven primarily by the domestic market, is being achieved in a financially prudent manner.” Passenger numbers were four times higher in July-September compared with April-June, cutting the year-on-year decrease to 64% in the third quarter from 91% in the second. Aeroflot highlights IATA data showing that the Russian domestic market “was the only major market worldwide where operating volumes were fully restored as early as August”. It adds that “the market has continued to outstrip other markets in terms of its speed of recovery”.<br/>

Delta said Friday CFO Paul Jacobson would resign from his position, effective Nov. 15, to join General Motors as CFO. Jacobson, 48, was also named the executive VP of GM and will report to CEO Mary Barra, GM said. He will replace John Stapleton, GM’s acting CFO, who will continue as the company’s North America CFO, a position he has held since January 2014. Jacobson took over as Delta CFO in 2012. The airline said it will be conducting a global search for a replacement, besides considering internal candidates. In the interim, Gary Chase and Bill Carroll will serve as co-chief financial officers.<br/>