The sky-high cost of aviation fuel is prompting United Airlines to scrap more than a fifth of its fleet of aircraft as the aviation industry grapples with soaring costs and weakening demand for travel.
United, which is America's second biggest airline, announced today it was retiring 100 of its 455 planes - comprising 94 short-haul Boeing 737s and six jumbo jets.
The carrer had planned to park just 30 aircraft and shed 500 jobs; it now plans to cut 1,400-1,600 jobs and shut its budget brand, Ted.
"This environment demands that we and the industry act decisively and responsibly," said United's chief executive, Glenn Tilton. "We continue to do the right work to reduce costs and increase revenue to respond to record fuel costs and the challenging economic environment."
The Chicago-based carrier is trimming the number of seats available on its route network by 9-10%. Most of the reductions will be on US domestic services, with United's 11 daily flights to London likely to continue.
United's move follows the failure of merger talks with rival US Airways last month. Its cuts come hot on the heels of a decision by the market leader, American Airlines, to scrap 75 planes and cut its services by 11-12%.
Michael Boyd, an aviation consultant at the Colorado-based Boyd Group, said the planes being removed were older aircraft which can be axed without any liability to leasing agencies. "They're being parked because they're paid for, not because they're fuel guzzlers," he said.
He said United was likely to trim the frequency on routes rather than abandoning destinations altogether, although he added: "Their management track record has been so clumsy, I don't know how successfully they're going to do this. They've not been running an airline - they've been running a merger partner."
As the price of oil teeters at about $130 (£65) per barrel, airlines around the world are feeling the pinch. While environmentalists cheer the downturn in aviation, smaller cities are becoming concerned about losing services
Holiday destinations, where lucrative business-class demand is limited, are suffering the most.
An analysis by USA Today found Orlando and Las Vegas were losing scores of flights while Hawaii, where local carrier Aloha Airlines has gone out of business, is expected to have 25% fewer flights once October timetables begin.
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