US airlines warn of drag from latest Covid-19 wave

Several leading USairlineson Thursday cut their forecasts for the third quarter, citing lower bookings and increased cancelations due to thelatestwaveofCovid-19infections.

After a better than expected July, AmericanAirlines"experienced softness in August" in bookings and an increase in cancellations, attributed "to the rise inCovid-19cases associated with the delta variant," the company said in a securities filing.

American now expects third-quarter revenues to be 24 to 28 percent lower than the comparable period of 2019, worse than the July estimater for a drop of about 20 percent.

UnitedAirlinesalso lowered projections, saying it "has seen in the last few weeks a deceleration in customer bookings for travel compared to previous estimations due to the recent spike inCovid-19cases associated with the Delta variant."

Despite thedragfromthe recent rise in infections, "the current spike in cases has been significantly less impactful to date than prior spikes and is expected to be temporary in nature," United saidin a securities filing.

"Based on demand patterns following prior waves ofCovid-19, the Company expects bookings to begin to recover once cases peak."

After suffering through a devastating 2020 due toCovid-19, USairlineshave partially recovered thanks to the progress on vaccinations and an uptick in domestic travel.

However, business travel and international travel remain well below their pre-pandemic levels and are not expected to fully recover before 2022 or later.

Delta Air Lines, SouthwestAirlinesand JetBlueAirlinesalso lowered some forecasts in securities filings, citing similar dynamics.

Executivesfromleading carriers are scheduled to present at an investor conference later Thursday.