PIGS debt crisis pummels airline and airport share prices

Another week, another crisis for the airline industry. The problems confronting the heavily indebted 'PIGS' economies (Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Spain) has been simmering for months, weighing on the euro and economic outlook for the European economy. But the crisis went to a new level yesterday as Standard & Poor's (S&P) assigned a junk rating to Greece's sovereign debt and reduced Portugal's rating by two levels.