United Airlines News

Deloitte has taken the pulse of corporate America, and the 150 travel managers it surveyed are a lot more cautious than airlines would have you believe.

U.S. airlines avoided broad bankruptcies and cuts with the record $74 billion in government Covid-19 aid. But the relief was industry-specific and left out a lot of other sectors, including hotels and restaurants. That has meant a bumpy national economic recovery.

In Skift’s top stories this week, United sees a potential full recovery in 2022, Kayak launches Kayak for Business, and Canada reopens its borders for fully vaccinated U.S. travelers.

United has big aspirations for 2022 as the travel recovery continues to accelerate in the U.S. But very real concerns about the Delta variant and the broader recovery outside of the airline's control could set those plans back.

U.S. airlines took tens of billions in government bailouts. Now, many are having trouble delivering basic services to their consumers. It is a bad look, but it does not mean the bailouts were the wrong idea. Whether you like it or not, airlines are special. People rely on them, and the government had no choice.

The pandemic has forced airline CEOs to be more accessible. Coming off the worst year in aviation's modern history, being front and center with workers and customers takes on a new urgency for CEOs looking to resuscitate business.

United's 270-jet order is a milestone for the airline, but the carrier is playing catch-up with its rivals, Delta and American, which have newer aircraft in their fleets. Still, the order is a bet that the industry will not just bounce back but grow as it emerges from the pandemic.

In Skift’s top stories this week, Icelandair's plan to return to normalcy, airlines wants to bring criminal charges against unruly passengers, shortages ripple through the travel industry this summer and investors back Outdoorsy as the new Airbnb.