UAL’s woes continue with $1.1 billion first quarter net loss

UAL’s woes continue with $1.1 billion first quarter net loss    Bankrupt UAL Corp., parent company of United Airlines, reported a net loss of $1.1 billion for the first quarter, compared to a loss of $459 million in the same period last year.
   The net loss figure includes $768 million in reorganization items, including a curtailment charge of $433 million related to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp.’s motion to terminate the UAL’s defined benefit pension plan for ground employees, and $294 million in charges related to the rejection of aircraft.
   UAL also reported an operating loss of $250 million, which compares to a loss of $211 million in the first quarter 2004.
   Total revenues were down 2.5 percent to $2.9 billion compared to $3 billion in the year-prior period. Cargo revenues increased 16.2 percent in the first quarter to $172 million.
   UAL said its fuel costs for the quarter were $202 million higher than the first quarter 2004 on 2 percent lower capacity.
   “In an extremely tough industry environment, we made progress in executing our business plan,” said Glenn Tilton, United’s chairman, chief executive officer and president.
   “Termination and replacement of the pension plans is something we tried very hard to avoid, but it simply proved unavoidable,” said Jake Brace, executive vice president and chief financial officer. “This is a difficult but necessary step which will move us significantly closer to exiting bankruptcy as a sustainable, viable enterprise.”