Norwegian cancels 3,000 flights and implements layoffs due to the impact of the coronavirus

Temporary layoffs have been implemented for a significant share of the Norwegian workforce.

Norwegian has announced that it will be cancelling approximately 3,000 flights between mid-March and mid-June of this year, due to the impact of the coronavirus. This represents approximately 15% of the airline's total capacity for this period. The company has also said that it has put several other measures in place, including temporary layoffs of a "significant share" of its workforce. The past week, Norwegian has experienced reduced demand on future bookings, and it will cancel about 3,000 flights to meet the change in demand. The company has said that affected customers will receive information about these changes as soon as they take place. Norwegian CEO Jacob Schram of Norwegian said: "This is a critical time for the aviation industry, including us at Norwegian. We encourage the authorities to immediately implement measures to imminently reduce the financial burden on the airlines in order to protect crucial infrastructure and jobs. "Unfortunately, cancellations will affect a significant share of our colleagues at Norwegian. We have initiated formal consultations with our unions regarding temporary layoffs for flying crew members as well as employees on the ground and in the offices. "We will continue to engage in constructive dialogue with unions and employees to work through this difficult situation together." Norwegian has said that it will continue to share updates with its customers, the financial market and the media once new measures are implemented.