COVID 19: US major airlines operating fleets dive in Mar-2020

In the span of a month the COVID-19 coronavirus has been declared a pandemic, borders have been closed, and air travel worldwide has nearly come to a standstill.

Airlines around the globe are cutting capacity to match near zero demand, and their capacity projections almost change on a daily basis against the backdrop of a growing consensus that it will take at least two years for demand to reach 2019 and early 2020 levels.

Global operators are also slashing their operating fleets, including the largest US operators, which have now grounded unprecedented numbers of aircraft in a stunningly short period of time.

Data compiled by CAPA shows that the operating fleets of American, Delta and United are below half of where they were at the start of 2020, with the most drastic reductions taking place in late Mar-2020. And there will be more to come.