LONDON, Sept 4 — Virgin Atlantic is preparing to cut more than 1,000 jobs after seeing a slower-than-expected recovery in international demand for air travel, Sky News reported yesterday.

The report comes as the company’s £1.2 billion pound (RM6.6 billion) rescue deal is set for completion this week after a London judge gave the go-ahead to the airline’s restructuring plan in a court hearing on Wednesday.

The airline will announce the layoffs as soon as today, the report said, adding that the latest round of cuts, if confirmed, would mean that Virgin Atlantic’s workforce has almost halved from about 10,000 people before the coronavirus pandemic.

Virgin Atlantic declined to comment on the Sky News report.

The company, which is 51 per cent owned by Richard Branson’s Virgin Group and 49 per cent by US’ Delta Air Lines Inc, has had to close its Gatwick base and cut more than 3,500 jobs to contend with the fallout from the pandemic, which has grounded planes and hammered demand for air travel. — Reuters