President Donald Trump said yesterday that his administration would help U.S. airlines facing sharp downturns in passenger traffic as a result of the novel coronavirus pandemic, but gave no details, Reuters reported. “We’ll be helping the airlines. You have to help the airlines,” Trump told reporters before departing on a visit to Kenosha, Wisconsin. “Airlines are a tough business in good times.” White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows last week said Trump was weighing executive action to avoid massive layoffs at airlines if Congress fails to agree on a fresh economic stimulus package to counter the fallout from the pandemic. Helping the airline industry is a “significant concern” for the Trump administration given its strategic importance for national security and supply chains, in addition to the large number of jobs at stake, a senior administration official said. The official said there was significant bipartisan support in Congress for measures to help airlines and ensure they survived the prolonged collapse in demand. U.S. passenger airlines are still collectively losing more than $5 billion a month as 30 percent of planes remain parked. Passenger travel demand is down about 70 percent and, on average, planes that are flying are half-full.
