Southwest Airlines on Thursday reported a $3.1 billion annual loss, its first since 1972, and said it faced stagnant demand in January and February driven by high levels of COVID-19 cases.
See also: Southwest Airlines to vaccinate employees against COVID-19 for free.
The airlines are hoping that the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine will help lift demand, but so far deployment of the vaccine in the United States has been spotty and there are concerns that new variants of the virus could further spread the infection, threatening a rapid recovery.
See also: Southwest will receive 35 737 MAX through end 2021.
“While the availability of the vaccine should mark the beginning of the end of this pandemic, current trends in passenger bookings do not indicate significant improvement until March 2021,” said Southwest CEO Gary Kelly.
The airline is forecasting average first-quarter cash burn of about $17 million per day, up from the $12 million per day it recorded in the fourth quarter of last year.
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