CHICAGO/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Major U.S. airlines applied on Friday for payroll grants from the U.S. Treasury meant to keep workers employed during a sharp downturn from the coronavirus, though the terms of any aid were still unclear and some warned that funds would not be enough to help them through their toughest crisis ever.
FILE PHOTO: Delta Air Lines passenger planes are seen parked due to flight reductions made to slow the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport in Birmingham, Alabama, U.S. March 25, 2020. REUTERS/Elijah Nouvelage
American Airlines Group Inc (AAL.O), United Airlines Holdings Inc (UAL.O), Delta Air Lines Inc (DAL.N), Southwest Airlines Co (LUV.N) and JetBlue Airways Corp (JBLU.O) each said they had submitted grant applications but did not disclose details or terms.
Treasury had asked companies to propose financial instruments such as warrants or equity options as possible taxpayer compensation for up to $32 billion in payroll grants for airlines, cargo carriers and airport contractors under the CARES Act passed by Congress last week.
Treasury set a 5 p.m. EDT (2100 GMT) Friday deadline to expedite the grants. There is a second final deadline on April 27.
The airline industry has pushed back on the possibility of the government taking an equity stake in exchange for the grants, which the companies and union