Blames Reduction In Travel By Government Employees For Losses

The partial government shutdown is apparently starting to pinch at least one airline. Delta CEO Ed Bastian says that with government employees not traveling the past month, his airline has lost some $25 million in revenue.

Bastian told CNBC that Delta will lose about $25 million per month for the duration of the partial shutdown, according to a report from USA Today.

He also said that security lines at airports have gotten longer as more TSA workers are calling in sick during the impasse between Congressional Democrats and President Trump, but he said long waits are "sporadic" and not the norm. And anything requiring FAA approvals, such as certification of new aircraft, is sitting on the back burner.

But Delta also reported fourth-quarter and full-year profits on Tuesday. Adjusted pre-tax income for the December quarter 2018 was $1.2 billion driven by over $700 million of revenue growth, allowing the company to fully recapture the $508 million increase in adjusted fuel expense and produce an 11 percent adjusted pre-tax margin. Adjusted earnings per share increased by 42 percent year over year to $1.30.

For the full year, adjusted pre-tax income was $5.1 billion, a $137 million decrease relative to 2017 as the company overcame approximately 90 percent of the $2 billion increase in fuel expense. Full year adjusted earnings per share were $5.65, up 19 percent compared to the prior year as the company recognized benefits from tax reform and a four percent lower share count, according to a company news release.

(Image from file)

FMI: wwww.delta.com, Original report