After markets closed on Friday, Delta Air Lines had suspended dividend payments, as the company and the airline industry try to weather the severe travel slowdown caused by COVID-19
After acknowledging that the company was burning through $50 million in cash daily and expects second-quarter revenue to fall 80% year over year Delta CEO Ed Bastian called the pandemic “the greatest economic challenge in our history,”
“It’s also clear, given the underlying damage the virus has created to the overall economy, that demand recovery will take an extended period once the virus is contained“.
Delta and other airlines, whose business has cut severely because of the outbreak, are seeking assistance from the U.S. government.
The airlines are expected to receive some $50 billion to help them stay afloat.
