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(Adds detail, background, Loganair)
LONDON, March 30 (Reuters) - British low cost airline
easyJet said it had grounded its entire fleet of over
330 aircraft and had no visibility on when it could restart
flights, highlighting the heavy strain on airlines trying to
survive to fly again after coronavirus.
EasyJet also said on Monday that it would furlough its 4,000
UK-based cabin crew for two months, meaning they will not work
from April 1 but will be paid 80% of their average pay under a
government job retention scheme.
The health emergency has brought European air travel to a
standstill, meaning airlines have no revenues and face a battle
to survive.
Some UK airlines had been hoping for an airline specific
state aid package but Britain told them last week that it will
only consider stepping in once they had exhausted all other
possible options, such as raising capital from existing
investors.
EasyJet said on Monday it was focused on short term
liquidity, including removing cost from the business and working
with suppliers to defer and reduce payments where possible,
including on aircraft expenditure, and was in ongoing
discussions with liquidity providers.
The airline said that grounding its aircraft removed
significant cost.
"We are working tirelessly to ensure that easyJet continues
to be well positioned to overcome the challenges of
coronavirus," easyJet's CEO Johan Lundgren said in a statement.
Separately, small regional UK carrier Loganair, which flies
between Scottish islands and the mainland, said on Monday that
it would approach the government for financial help this week,
having already tried to ask its owners for help.
"I do think, that like the vast majority of UK airlines, we
will be going back to take up that invite for further
conversation with the Treasury in the coming days because we
have to," Loganair CEO Jonathan Hinkles told BBC radio.
EasyJet said in its statement it had struck the deal to
furlough cabin crew with Unite, the union. Asked about a
potential similar deal with its pilots, easyJet said it
continued to talk to BALPA, the UK pilots union.
Virgin Atlantic has already requested state aid, asking for
a package of commercial loans and guarantees worth hundreds of
millions of pounds, according to the Financial Times.
(Reporting by Sarah Young; editing by James Davey)
