US lawmakers back $ 15 billion in airline payroll assistance

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A bipartisan legislative deal unveiled by U.S. lawmakers on Sunday will grant U.S. airlines $ 15 billion in new wage assistance that will allow them to return more than 32,000 unlicensed workers to their payrolls through March 31, they said Reuters sources informed about the matter.

The support is part of $ 45 billion earmarked for the transportation sector in a $ 900 billion package for COVID-19 relief.

Amtrak, the nation’s largest passenger rail company, will receive $ 1 billion, while $ 14 billion will go to public transportation systems and $ 10 billion to state highways, said a senior Democratic adviser.

The legislation is also expected to include significant changes to the way the Federal Aviation Administration certifies new planes following two Boeing 737 MAX crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia that killed 346 people, said three congressional aides, but the specific details they were not immediately available.

The sources declined to be identified as details of the package have yet to be formally revealed.

The aviation assistance comes after five months of furious lobbying, first from aviation unions and then from airline executives, who argued that the industry desperately needed new help from the government as demand for travel remains devastated. for the COVID-19 pandemic. America’s transit systems have also warned that without new government help they could be forced to make draconian cuts in service and jobs.

US airlines laid off more than 32,000 workers in October, after a six-month, $ 25 billion bailout measure expired on September 30. American Airlines alone laid off 19,000 employees, while United Airlines laid off more than 13,000.

The US Department of Transportation said US passenger airlines had 368,000 full-time workers as of October 15.

Airline workers will be paid back to December 1 and airlines will have to resume their flights on some routes they stopped after the aid package expired, congressional aides briefed on the talks said. Airline workers cannot be licensed until March 31 as a condition for attendance.

Airlines should receive the funds about 10 days after the bill is signed, the sources said.

The new assistance program is expected to mirror the $ 25 billion program approved by Congress in March, which required the largest airlines to repay 30% of payroll grants over time and offer government authorizations. It is also expected to include minimum flight requirements.

US airlines are losing $ 180 million in cash a day, with passenger volume down nearly 70% from a year earlier, while cancellations are increasing, according to industry lobby Airlines for America.

Congress approved another $ 25 billion in low-cost government airline loans in March and suspended some special aviation taxes through Dec. 31.

The new $ 45 billion transportation package will also include $ 1.75 billion for airports and $ 200 million for airport concessionaires, $ 1 billion for airport contractors, and $ 2 billion for the private bus, bus industries. schoolchildren and ferries, authorities said.