Northwest Airlines said it will cut 4,900 jobs and reduce its flight schedule by 12 per cent because of a drop in passenger demand due to the war in Iraq.
Northwest said it was making the moves as it also idles 20 planes.
The airline cited "a drop in passenger demand due to both the threat of and now the commencement of hostilities with Iraq."
"As world events unfold, Northwest will continue to monitor passenger demand to determine whether additional actions are necessary," it said.
Northwest said it would use layoffs, attrition, voluntary leaves and leave open positions unfilled to make the job cuts. A relief package including pay, medical coverage and flight privileges will be offered to the affected employees, the airline said.
The cuts include 2,000 mechanics and 1,400 flight attendants.
Northwest already had laid off about 12,000 employees due to the slump in the airline industry.
Analysts said earlier this week that the war could give airlines reason to cut costs via the force majeure clause, which they used after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Most of the major carriers are suffering under excessive labour expenses, poor economic conditions and the decrease in spending by business traveller.
United Airlines had warned its employees that layoffs could come as early as Friday, and was expected to announce reductions to its flying schedule starting April 1 later in the day.
Already this week, Continental Airlines announced it will cut its work force by about 1,200 people by the end of the year to save $500 million. More layoffs are planned if war with Iraq is prolonged and air travel remains soft.
American Airlines, the world's No. 1 carrier, said Thursday it will cut international flights by 6 per cent in April to meet a downturn in travel bookings due to the war in Iraq and could make additional reductions if traffic remains slow.
Since the Sept. 11 attacks, major airlines have laid off roughly 100,000 employees and industrywide capacity is down about 14 per cent from where it was two years ago. But passenger traffic and ticket prices have also fallen sharply, resulting in bankruptcy filings by US Airways, United Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines and industrywide losses of $9 billion in 2002.
