United Airlines has cut its flight schedule by 90 percent in May and expects similar cuts for June as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. United also warned that travel demand that is now essentially at zero shows no sign of improving in the near term making job cuts likely. United CEO Oscar Munoz and President Scott Kirby told staff in a letter.

The airline flew less than 200,000 people in the first two weeks of April, a 97 percent drop from the more than 6 million people it flew during the same time in 2019, according to the memo. United also expects to fly fewer people during the month of May than it did on a single day in May of last year, the letter adds.

"The historically severe economic impact of this crisis means even when travel demand starts to inch back, it likely will not bounce back quickly. We believe that the health concerns about COVID-19 are likely to linger which means even when social distancing measures are relaxed, and businesses and schools start to reopen, life won't necessarily return to normal," they said.

The government funding United expects to receive soon will be helpful in the near-term to protect their employees in the U.S. from involuntary furloughs and pay rate cuts through the end of September. “But the challenging economic outlook means we have some tough decisions ahead as we plan for our airline, and our overall workforce, to be smaller than it is today, starting as early as October 1, it adds.

United said that the government money does not cover its total payroll expense, and noted that payroll is only about 30 percent of total costs, which also include airport rent and supplies.