Virgin Atlantic unveils ‘drastic’ measures to conserve cash

The airline said last week’s developments had “accelerated the sharp and continual drop” in demand for flights across its network.

“Today, Virgin Atlantic will put drastic measures in place to ensure cash is preserved, costs are controlled, and the future of the airline is safeguarded,” it said.

“The situation is deteriorating at pace and the airline has seen several days of negative bookings, driven by a huge volume of cancellations as customers choose to stay at home.

“Significantly, the European Commission has announced a suspension of the ‘use it or lose it’ slot rules until 30 June 2020, enabling the airline to consolidate schedules and ground aircraft immediately.”