United lost $2.1 billion in the first quarter because of coronavirus, and it's a dark sign of just how bad things will get for the airline industry

• United Airlines said on Monday that it had lost $2.1 billion in the first quarter due to the coronavirus pandemic.
• The airline took in $8 billion of revenue, a 17% drop over the same quarter in 2019. All of the losses came in March, as the pandemic worsened.
• Losses have accelerated in recent weeks, with subsequent quarters likely to see a greater loss.
• This is a developing story. Check back for more.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

United Airlines said on Monday that it lost $2.1 billion on a pretax basis in the first quarter of 2020, as the coronavirus pandemic began to impact the world's airlines.

In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, United said that it earned $8 billion in revenue in the first quarter, down 17% from the first quarter of 2019. Virtually all of those losses came during March, as the outbreak reached pandemic status and travel came to a halt, a senior United official said during a media briefing.

The airline said that on an adjusted basis, the loss was about $1 billion. The gap was because of $1 billion in special charges.

United has cut its capacity about 90% as the virus brings travel to almost a complete stop around the world. Revenue has essentially halted, with cargo operations and ticket sales for essential workers failing to make up for the loss of business and leisure travel.

This is a developing story. Check back for more.

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