Spirit Airlines flight attendants are receiving double pay on any work through January 4, their union said, as the budget carrier scrambles to keep its schedules intact after US airlines were hammered by a week of mass cancellations. The holiday season has been marred by delayed or canceled flights, causing chaos at most US airports as sick staff and fear of contracting Covid-19 grow. Coupled with the prospect of dealing with unruly passengers, many pilots and cabin crew are even forgoing overtime incentives. That hesitancy, combined with bad weather and tight staffing, has led to over 8,000 flight cancellations over the past eight days, according to flight-tracking website FlightAware.com. "All flight attendants, regardless of how you have obtained your pairing, will be receiving 200% pay for any pairing that touches Dec. 28 through Jan. 4," the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA said in a statement. The union represented about 4,000 flights attendants at Spirit Airlines, according to the carrier's latest annual filing. Earlier this year, Florida-based Spirit Airlines was forced to cancel nearly 3,000 flights due to bad weather and staffing shortages.<br/>
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Philippine Airlinesreceived approval to tap $150m in additional financing and plans to cut its debt by $2b, after winning approval last month from a US court for its reorganization plan. “There are immense challenges ahead, but we look forward to tackling them as a reinvigorated Philippine Airlines, better positioned for strategic growth to continue serving our customers,” President Gilbert Santa Maria said Friday. The flagship carrier, majority owned by billionaire Lucio Tan, is one of several to enter debt restructuring in the US. Aeromexico and Colombia’s Avianca Holdings have both sought court protection in New York. Philippine Airlines received the go-ahead from the court after its reorganization plan didn’t face any major opposition from debt holders. The airline has the option to obtain up to $150m in additional financing from new investors, it said. It had already been given permission to access $505m worth of equity and debt financing to help it meet obligations. The global aviation sector has taken a beating as international travel ground to a halt due to Covid-19. The emergence of the omicron virus variant has triggered new border restrictions and business closures, clouding the outlook for recovery.<br/>