Spirit Airlines, based in the United States, announced on Monday, July 28th, that the company will temporarily lay off approximately 270 pilots later this year and demote another 140 pilots. This is one of the measures taken by the airline to reduce flights during the off-peak season in order to stabilize its already strained financial situation.
The airline stated that the temporary layoffs of pilots will take effect on November 1st, “to better align our personnel deployment with our flight schedule.”
At the same time, the company will demote 140 pilots from captain to first officer, with the demotion taking effect on October 1st.
In an email statement to Reuters, the company said, “We are taking necessary steps to ensure efficient operations as part of our efforts to restore profitability.”
This announcement comes as Spirit Airlines is trying to restructure its business to move away from its budget airline image and position itself as a high-end carrier.
After years of losses, heavy debts, and unsuccessful merger attempts, the Florida-based airline filed for bankruptcy protection in November of last year. The company emerged from bankruptcy protection in March of this year.
The Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), the union representing Spirit Airlines pilots, said in a statement that this is the third round of temporary layoffs and demotions of pilots implemented by the airline since September last year.
The union also stated that it is crafting a third memorandum of understanding to mitigate the impact of temporary layoffs, seeking voluntary solutions to reduce the scope of the layoffs and protect pilots’ careers.
Spirit Airlines reported a adjusted net loss of $158 million in the second quarter.
The company’s second-quarter revenue was approximately $1.3 billion, a decrease of 11% year-over-year.
Since the beginning of this year, Spirit Airlines’ stock has fallen by 50%.
(Reference: Reuters)