"United Airlines To Slash 16,370 Jobs As Air Travel Sinks"

"United Airlines joined American Airlines in the latest round of massive job cuts as the virus pandemic continues to batter the travel and tourism industry.

United said, in an internal memo, seen by Fox Business, that it will furlough 16,370 workers on Oct. 1. This includes 2,850 pilots, 6,920 flight attendants, and 2,010 technicians.

The Chicago-based carrier has over 90,000 workers and initially warned in July that 36,000 jobs were at risk of being lost as a demand crisis in air travel persisted through summer.

'The pandemic has drawn us in deeper and lasted longer than almost any expert predicted, and in an environment where travel demand is so depressed, United cannot continue with staffing levels that significantly exceed the schedule we fly,' the company memo to employees said. 'Sadly, we don't expect demand to return to anything resembling normal until there is a widely available treatment or vaccine.'

Airlines were infused with $25 billion in stimulus in March from the federal government to keep tens of thousands of workers employed through September. With the bailout funds depleted, air travel recovery that could take a couple years, and some airlines warning that if more bailout money is not seen shortly, another round of massive layoffs could be seen."