United Airlines sees improvement in third-quarter costs, capacity

[September 07, 2022]  (Reuters) - United Airlines Holdings Inc said on Wednesday it expects a small improvement in current-quarter costs and capacity as the carrier wades through staffing gaps and aircraft shortages to tap booming demand.   

United Airlines planes are parked at their gates at O'Hare International Airport ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., November 20, 2021. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

Major U.S. airlines expect travel demand to persist in the second half of the year but a shortage of crew and aircraft has forced the carriers to cut flights and make costly staffing adjustments to avoid cancellations and delays.

However, United said in a regulatory filing on Wednesday that it has seen "improving operational reliability" over the course of 2022.

Excluding fuel, the airline expects Cost Per Available Seat Mile (CASM) for the third quarter to be up 16% from the same period in 2019, a slight improvement compared with its previous forecast of 16%-17%.

Shares of the company rose 1.4% in premarket trading.

The Chicago-based carrier expects third quarter capacity to be down 10% to 11% from pre-pandemic levels compared to its earlier forecast of 11%.

(Reporting by Aishwarya Nair in Bengaluru)

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