United Airlines posts heavy loss in 2021

With the prospect of surpassing 2019 levels, particularly in capacity, United said the impact of the Ômicron variant at the end of the year was felt.

While United Airlines planned a robust resumption of levels in 2022, the Covid-19 pandemic had other plans. The situation experienced by the world at the end of last year, with the Ômicron variant spreading rapidly, caused the recovery of the 2019 indices to be postponed. In numbers, therefore, the company’s net retraction was 2 billion dollars in 2021.

In the last quarter of the year alone, when Ômicron began to appear around the globe, United’s net loss reached 600 million dollars. Revenues in the same period were down 25% compared to the last three months of 2019 to $8.2 billion.

Among the main points that explain the damage of variants to numbers, it is possible to mention two. The first is the decrease and cancellation of reservations for flights in January and February, while the second is due to the crew contaminated with covid-19, causing operational problems for United.

With all the indices showing the impact on the airline’s results, expectations for the first quarter of this year are also negative. According to United, the expected drop in revenue is between 20% and 25% compared to the same cut in 2019.