Etihad flags more cabin crew job cuts, grounds Airbus A380s
Etihad Airways told cabin crew on Wednesday there would be layoffs this week, an internal email seen by Reuters showed, and a company source said the airline will keep its Airbus A380 superjumbos parked “indefinitely” due to a slower than expected recovery in air travel demand.
In the internal email, cabin crew were told those affected would be notified within 24 hours, without saying how many would lose their jobs.
The warning was sent out two days after a similar notice was sent out to pilots at the Abu Dhabi state carrier.
Staff were told in the email that Etihad believes it will become a much smaller airline as air travel demand has not been recovering fast enough, leaving the carrier with a larger workforce than it needs.
A company source said up to 1,000 cabin crew job cuts are expected, including senior cabin staff and cabin managers.
Etihad this week said it would push ahead with plans to shrink the airline into mid-sized carrier concentrating on its wide-body fleet, raising questions about the future of its 30 narrow-body Airbus A320 jets.
