Duckworth, United CEO Discuss Transportation Industry Recovery

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) virtually met with Scott Kirby, CEO of United Airlines, yesterday to discuss the ongoing impacts of COVID-19 on the airline industry. Duckworth and Kirby also discussed President Biden’s recently-enacted American Rescue Plan and how it will help the transportation industry, as well as the importance of future infrastructure legislation and investment.

“Our airline industry workers have been hit hard by this pandemic, but I’m proud of the funding the American Rescue Plan provides for the thousands of Illinoisans who have been impacted,” Duckworth said. “I had a productive discussion with Scott Kirby on how the airline industry will work to recover over the next year. I’ll keep working to ensure our aviation and transportation systems and workers have the funding and support necessary throughout this pandemic and beyond.”

Duckworth, a member of the U.S. Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, has been a strong supporter of the transportation industry and its workforce throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Thousands of airline industry jobs in Illinois were protected by the American Rescue Plan, which provides $15 billion to extend the airline worker payroll support program. The payroll support program has been estimated to have saved approximately 386,000 direct airline jobs across the U.S. and supported nearly 350,000 additional jobs reliant upon the airline industry. This American Rescue Plan also provides $1.5 billion in transit funding for the Chicago region, an estimated $388 million for Illinois airports and restores and reduces service cuts for Amtrak, protecting hundreds of Illinois jobs.

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