EasyJet to cut a third of workforce as Covid-19 pandemic hits travel

The airline said it expects to have reduced its fleet size by around 51 aircraft to approximately 302 by the end of September.

European budget airline easyJet said Thursday it plans to cut up to a third of its 15,000-strong workforce as the global aviation industry struggles to cope with the COVID-19 pandemic.

The company plans to resume limited service on June 15, but estimates that it may take three years for demand to get back to the levels of 2019, before the coronavirus outbreak grounded flights around the world and pushed the global economy toward a deep recession.

“We do it to make sure that easyJet not only survives through this period, but also comes out of this as a