United chief executive Scott Kirby warned that the US Government shutdown risks consumer confidence and airline ticket sales. Photo / Getty Images
United chief executive Scott Kirby warned that the US Government shutdown risks consumer confidence and airline ticket sales. Photo / Getty Images
The longer the US Government shutdown drags on, the greater the risk to consumer confidence and airline ticket sales, United chief executive Scott Kirby says.
Initial expectations were for a speedy resolution to the shutdown, which began on October 1 because of a Capitol Hill budget impasse.
“But as timegoes on, as people read headlines that say ‘it’s not going to get resolved soon,’ people start to lose confidence in the government and the government’s ability to resolve this, and that’s when it starts to impact bookings,” Kirby said on an earnings conference call.
Air travel has continued throughout the shutdown, but air traffic controllers and staff from the Transportation Safety Administration (TSA) are working without pay.
Kirby echoed other airline industry leaders who have praised air traffic controllers for professionalism and low absentee levels despite not being paid.
Kirby’s comments came after United projected stronger fourth-quarter profits than analyst estimates, describing the demand environment as “strengthening”.
But Kirby said Washington power brokers needed to recognise that a prolonged shutdown will push the economy too far.
“I don’t know when that happens,” he said. “It’s not some magic step function, but every day that goes by, you know, the risk to the US economy grows. So I hope we will avoid an unforced error here.”
