Forbes Opinion: United Airlines President Says Emirates Tests Trump with Money-Losing Athens-Newark Flight
“United President Scott Kirby says Emirates will lose an estimated $25 million to $30 million annually on its Athens-Newark route, where service begins Sunday.
Emirates will operate the route “to see what the Trump administration will do,” Kirby said, in an interview. “It feels like a test of the political will of the United States.”
The route was announced on Jan. 23, three days after Donald Trump took office as president.
While the big three U.S. carriers – American, Delta, and United – have battled rapid U.S. expansion by subsidized Middle East carriers Emirates, Etihad and Qatar, they are particularly troubled by Emirates’ two fifth freedom flights: Athens-Newark and Milan-Kennedy.”