U.S. Airlines Requesting $50+ Billion In Aid & Tax Relief

Airlines for America (A4A), an airlines lobbying group has released it’s official request for government assistance. The assistance they are requesting falls into three things:

  • Grants. A request for $25 billion to compensate for reduced liquidity from December 31st, 2019 through December 31st, 2020 for passenger carriers and $4 billion for cargo carriers
  • Loans. Another $25 billion for passenger carriers and $4 billion for cargo carriers.
  • Tax relief.
    • 2020 Excise Taxes: Rebate to U.S. Part 121 air carriers the amount of federal excise taxes paid into
      the Airport and Airway Trust Fund (AATF) that have been remitted to the U.S. Government beginning
      January 1, 2020 through March 31, 2020.
    • Temporary Aviation Excise Tax Repeal: Temporary repeal of all the federal excise taxes on Part 121 air
      carriers, including those taxes on tickets, cargo and fuel through December 31, 2021 (i.e., Internal
      Revenue Code (IRC) sections 4261(a), 4261(c), 4261(b), 4261(e)(3), 4271 and 4081(a)(2)(c)(i)), subject
      to a trigger for a further extension beyond 2021 dependent upon economic circumstances.

 

View Comments (58)

  • How about we bail out middle class America instead? Millions will lose their jobs and income as they’re forced to sit at home waiting for this virus to blow over. Can’t travel, eat at a bar or enjoy a concert. Nope. That’d be too smart to do.

  • The law states corporations are people, and that money is speech, therefore Mr. & Mrs. Airlines should be told to STFU and pull THEMSELES UP by the bootstraps or be on the street.

  • Delta won't even pay their flight attendants and are forcing unpaid time off, but yet they want a bailout for their executives and shareholders? Spare me. Screw off, airlines.

    • Close -- the unpaid leave is voluntary. Similar to during any other downturn at pretty much every other airline, furlough goes to volunteers first. Some will take it. My friend's wife took hers because it worked out for their family. The alternative is being selected for involuntary furlough, and I guess that's not as nice?

  • And the question with Medicare for all is from where they will get the money? The government have a lot of money for corporations but not for normal people.

  • These companies should be forced to have a minimum of cash just like the banks. Bail them out? Fuck outta here man. Go on a buyback spree and essentially bought back garbage. I need to have emergency liquidity, why don't these companies?

  • Looks like the invisible hand of the free market is not invisible, and is just a CEO asking for a handout.