‘Breathtaking’ drop in air travel has Alaska, Southwest cutting flights
Top executives at Alaska Airlines and Southwest said Tuesday the carriers are weighing cuts to their flight schedules in the next few months because of the precipitous drop in air traffic demand from concern about the novel coronavirus.
Southwest chief executive Gary Kelly said “the velocity and severity of the decline is breathtaking.”
Alaska president Ben Minicucci said that while the Seattle-based airline typically carries about 4 million passengers a month, since Feb. 24 it has seen 265,000 fewer bookings for March departures than a year ago, and 270,000 more cancellations for the month.
Both executives said they are looking to cut all nonessential spending and freeze hiring.
They also suggested that if the travel slump is prolonged, once Boeing’s 737 MAX is ungrounded their airlines may postpone planned deliveries of those aircraft.
In a video message to Southwest employees Tuesday, Kelly told them in sobering terms that if the impact continues for an extended period, as a last resort the airline might have to ground airplanes and furlough some employees.
“We are faced with a serious problem not seen since 9/11. And it may be worse,” Kelly said. “We’re seriously considering reductions to our scheduled flying in the short term and we will continue to monitor demand for necessary reductions thereafter.”
Southwest had already estimated last week that first quarter revenues could be down $200 million to $300 million compared to previous projections.
Minicucci, speaking at a JP Morgan conference, laid out the immediate hit to Alaska:
“We’ve recently seen a material reduction in bookings along with a spike in cancellations,” he said. “March and April travel have been the most materially impacted, but later periods have declined as well.”
Minicucci said that in reaction, Alaska will try to cancel flights expected to operate at a loss and transfer passengers to other unfilled flights that still get them to their destination.
— The Seattle Times
Inslee limits visitors at nursing homes, other care facilities
OLYMPIA — Gov. Jay Inslee on Tuesday morning declared new restrictions on people visiting long-term care facilities, such as nursing homes and assisted-living facilities, to reduce the spread and danger of the new coronavirus.
The restrictions will limit long-term care residents to one visitor per day, excluding end-of-life situations.
Visitors must be screened for symptoms of COVID-19, the illness caused by the virus, according to the new measures. Staff at those facilities will also have to be screened at the beginning of each shift.
The new restrictions are intended to protect older people and those with underlying medical conditions, who are most vulnerable to complications from COVID-19, Inslee said in a news conference.
Long-term care facilities have been in the spotlight as Kirkland’s Life Care Center emerged at the heart of Washington’s initial outbreak. Most of the deaths confirmed so far in this state have been associated with the Kirkland nursing home.
The new rules cover about 55,000 residents of places like nursing homes or assisted-living facilities, said Cheryl Strange, secretary of the state Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS).
Inslee also announced measures to make sure Washington workers who must quarantine or isolate themselves can get unemployment benefits if they don’t have access to paid sick leave.
— The Seattle Times
Chicago mayor cancels parades
CHICAGO — The coronavirus claimed its first major events in Chicago’s civic life Wednesday, as Mayor Lori Lightfoot canceled the city’s massive St. Patrick’s Day parades for this weekend because of fears the disease would spread through the dense crowds.
The mayor made her decision after days of speculation as other cities from Boston to Dublin dropped their festivities for the holiday. Lightfoot called off Saturday’s downtown parade and Sunday’s South Side Irish parade just days before they were set to step off. She also canceled a smaller Northwest Side parade.
“This was not an easy decision and we don’t take it lightly,” Lightfoot said at a morning news conference with Gov. J.B. Pritzker and other officials announcing the decision.
The mayor’s last-minute move to shut down the parades reflects the difficulty of the call. The St. Patrick’s Day revelry — which features the famous dyeing of the Chicago River green on the morning of the downtown parade — is a huge boon to Chicago hotels, restaurants and bars as people stream into the city from throughout the Midwest.
Lightfoot said officials would work to reschedule the parades at a later date.
The local tourism industry is already reeling from the recent cancellations of several big trade shows at McCormick Place, and the St. Patrick’s Day events draw tens of thousands of spectators.
— Chicago Tribune
U.S. Treasury considers extending April 15 tax deadline
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Treasury Department is considering extending the 2019 tax-filing deadline beyond April 15 to provide relief from economic disruption caused by the coronavirus outbreak, according to two people familiar with the matter.
Treasury officials have been discussing the idea of extending the Internal Revenue Service’s payment deadline as the Trump administration considers measures to relieve economic pressure on citizens, businesses and government agencies dealing with the impact of the virus, according to the people, who spoke on the condition to anonymity because the deliberations aren’t public.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Tuesday said his department is exploring what options it has to independently address the economic fallout from the virus. Mnuchin also held discussions with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi about an economic stimulus package.
A Treasury spokeswoman said no decision has been made. Spokespeople for the IRS and White House didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
It’s unclear if the Treasury Department has authority to delay the tax filing deadline for all taxpayers without consulting Congress. The April 15 deadline is in the tax code, though includes exceptions for when the 15th falls on a local holiday or weekend.
— Bloomberg News
Biden, Sanders to debate without live audience
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Democratic National Committee announced there will be no live audience for the debate between Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders scheduled for Sunday amid concerns about spreading the coronavirus.
“At the request of both campaigns and out of an abundance of caution, there will be no live audience at the Arizona debate taking place on Sunday, March 15th,” DNC Communications Director Xochitl Hinojosa said in a statement.
Earlier Tuesday, both campaigns canceled planned rallies in Cleveland on the advice of public health officials who are suggesting people avoid large gatherings.
CNN, which was sponsoring the debate, said in a statement there would also be no press filing center and no “spin room,” which is where candidates, their surrogates and reporters gather after the event to discuss how it went.
The DNC statement said that health officials had suggested that the debate could go on with an audience, but “our number one priority has and will continue to be the safety of our staff, campaigns, Arizonans and all those involved in the debate.”
— Bloomberg News
Televangelist Jim Bakker pushing fake coronavirus cure, AG’s lawsuit says
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt is suing televangelist Jim Bakker and his show for claiming a product could cure the new coronavirus.
The lawsuit, announced Tuesday afternoon, alleges that in an episode of the “Jim Bakker Show” a guest claimed a product sold through his online store can cure the coronavirus.
Those claims are not backed by reliable scientific evidence, the lawsuit says. COVID-19, the disease’s official name, has killed more than 4,000 people and infected more than 100,000 throughout the world. Two people have been diagnosed in Kansas and Missouri.
The goal of the lawsuit filed in Stone County Circuit Court, attorney general’s spokesman Chris Nuelle said, is to stop misinformation.
“We wouldn’t want a consumer seeing this and thinking it could help them with the coronavirus,” Nuelle said. “If there’s misinformation out there, we want to combat it. If there’s misrepresentations being made, we want to prevent that.”
The lawsuit requests a permanent injunction ordering Bakker to stop marketing the product as a treatment for the coronavirus.
— The Kansas City Star
