American Airlines CEO: US COVID-19 aid 'saved' industry

American Airlines CE Doug Parker will tell a US Senate committee that $54b in COVID-19 US government assistance “saved the airline industry,” according to testimony seen by Reuters. Parker is set to testify alongside the chief executives of Southwest and United on Wednesday. Delta’s chief of operations will also testify. Parker will tell the panel that had Congress structured the entire assistance as government loans most airlines “would have survived by shutting down flying in April 2020, furloughing almost all of our teams, and waiting for demand to return to levels strong enough to justify restoring flying. As it turns out, that would have been some time in 2021.” Lawmakers are expected to quiz executives about how carriers used pandemic-related federal aid, staffing issues and other matters. Parker will also say the airline has “set a target of hiring an additional 18,000 team members in 2022.” Lawmakers want to know if voluntary employee buyouts offered by airlines, despite receiving payroll assistance, caused operational problems at some carriers that have resulted in the cancellation of hundreds of flights in recent months.<br/>