Thursday United Airlines reported a $112 million operating loss and a net loss of $259 million in February, including expenses from bankruptcy.
Last week The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times reported that United Airlines (UA) plans to push back its timetable for emerging from bankruptcy until late this summer at the earliest.
UA lost $2.8 billion in 2003, even after making deep budget cuts and negotiating labor concessions. To emerge from bankruptcy protection, the airline must secure federal loan guarantees, and the Air Transportation Stabilization Board (ATSB) is considering asking UA to trim its request for federally backed loans to $1.5 billion. The airline already has found lenders willing to provide $2 billion in exit financing if it gets the loan guarantee package from the ATSB. UA also is waiting on Congress, as legislation is pending that would ease its pension obligations over the next two years.