Cash squeeze may put United Airlines in a bind

The next few months will be crucial for United Airlines as it and other U.S. airlines cope with a cash squeeze.

The global recession has caused airline ticket sales to plunge deeper than anyone — carriers or analysts — anticipated.

Rather than banking cash from peak-season flying this summer as they normally do, United and its peers are paying a king’s ransom to borrow money to get them through the winter months, when demand for air travel usually chills.
ChicagoTribune