The US Airways (NYSE: LCC) ticker symbol says it all: LCC = Low Cost Carrier. With its latest announcement, the airline may want to change it to LEC -- Low Expense Carrier. In an attempt to keep pace with the plunging travel market, US Airways is cutting 1,000 jobs next year, shoving almost all its flying to its three hubs (Philadelphia, Phoenix and Charlotte) and Washington. Several international routes are being cut.

The airline reports that routes from its hubs have been profitable. Currently, US Airways pushes 93% of its flights through these airports, a rate it seeks to push up to 99% in 2010.

If you think all those new airline fees were a temporary measure to help these beleaguered companies through an economic crisis, you're out of your mind. Now that they've had a taste of how much they can make by charging you for an extra bag or a little more leg room, they're hooked. More important, the fees are making up a meaningful portion of airline revenues and profits, so investors aren't likely to be satisfied with a return to normal – well, they can't. Extra fees are the new "normal."

Business travelers still aren't coming back to the good seats, despite airlines' best efforts. FareCompare.com reports that many business class tickets to Europe are going to be 33% to 66% cheaper this fall relative to last year. Companies are being careful with their cash – which means stacking people in coach rather than giving them a little leg room on overseas flights. With back-of-the-plane tickets going for a quarter of the price (or less) than their business class equivalents, this isn't exactly shocking.

On Wednesday, Delta's (NYSE: DAL) cheapest NYC-to-London's cheapest roundtrip coach fare was $716 (for an October 23 departure and October 30 return), according to a report in USA Today. To take the same trip in business class, you were looking at a hefty $4,634. So, even though prices are down year-over-year, it doesn't mean that business travelers are being allowed to enjoy the opportunity.

Higher fuel prices and slipping demand for air travel have prompted a change. The International Air Transport Association revised its forecast of global airline losses for the year from $9 billion to $11 billion. Revenues for the air travel industry are expected to fall 15% to $455 billion worldwide. Passenger traffic is anticipated to fall by 4%, with cargo dropping 14% for the year.

Financially, IATA CEO Giovanni Bisignani says the impact of the financial crisis has been more severe than the terror attacks of eight years ago.

Earlier this morning, Continental Airlines (NYSE: CAL) announced that it will cut 1,700 jobs, along with raising fees for checking luggage. CAL tagged this news along with its quarterly earnings report, in which it reported a loss of $1.72 per share. In the same quarter a year ago CAL lost a nickel per share. Excluding one-time items, CAL lost $1.36 per share compared to estimates for a loss of $1.35 per share. Quarterly revenue slipped 22.7% to $3.13 billion in the quarter, just shy of the consensus estimate.

Staff cuts are coming for Singapore Airlines (OTC: SINGF) with calendar Q2 "almost certain" to be a money-loser. This won't be a first for the carrier, but it's definitely rare. Since going public in 1985, SINGF has only had one quarterly loss until now. It took the SARS epidemic to put this company into the red for three months, back in 2003. According to four of the five analysts polled, there was little the company could do to avert the situation.

In a respectable move, the staff cuts are following that of the executive team, which has had 10% to 20% sliced from its salaries. An operating loss of $50 million or more for Q2 will cause staff paychecks to fall by at least 2.5%. SINGF is on the hook to cut 25% of the "monthly variable component" (MVC) that's included in staff salaries if the airline's loss pierces the $50 million threshold. MVC disappears in its entirety if the loss passes the $200 million mark. Currently, MVC accounts for only 10% of employees' total compensation.

Employees have already been chipping in to reduce the airline's costs. Pilots, for example, have sacrificed 65% of a day's pay every month, and employees in general are working shorter weeks.

But, this hasn't been enough.

AMR Corporation (NYSE: AMR) got spanked in the second quarter, as frequent fliers kept their feet on the ground. The American Airlines parent posted a $390 million loss in a quarter that historically has been kind to travel companies. AMR rationalizes the results with the thought that the loss would have been only $319 million ($1.14 per share) if charges related to selling and grounding planes were excluded. This would have put the airline ahead of analyst expectations of a $1.28 per share loss. AMR's Q2 revenue fell 21% to $4.89 billion.

And, it's far better than the airline's performance in the second quarter of 2008.

Continental Airlines (NYSE: CAL) just got the relief it needs to compete. Despite resistance from the Department of Justice (which can only recommend), the Department of Transportation has granted the airline immunity from antitrust laws. This clears the way for Continental to work with United Airlines (NASDAQ: UAUA) -- and other carriers -- on international routes. Now, the airline can join Star Alliance, which already has antitrust immunity.

At the same time, DOT approved a joint venture among Continental, United, Lufthansa (OTC: DLAKY) and Air Canada. This new relationship would involve trans-Atlantic routes.

JetBlue Airways Corp. (NASDAQ: JBLU) is looking to sell 20 million shares of common stock and $150 million in convertible debt. Miserable conditions for the airline industry have led the low-cost carrier to turn to financial markets for the infusion that operations can't seem to deliver.

The debt, which is convertible into common stock, will be sold in two $75 million series. And the 20 million common shares would raise another $101 million (at yesterday's closing price of $5.03). If there's enough demand for the debt and equity securities, JetBlue may sell another 3 million shares of common stock and another $11.25 million in debt.

JetBlue isn't alone in raising capital. US Airways Group Inc. (NYSE: LCC) is planning to ask its shareholders to approve a measure that would double the amount of common shares it could issue to 400 million. The answer will come at the company's annual meeting on June 10, 2009.

How can exports not rebound? Last year ended on a sour note after posting record results, and 2009 is by all accounts likely to be ugly. The tourism and travel industry is expected to shed more than 200,000 jobs this year. Fortunately, there's a light at the end of the tunnel. The U.S. Department of Commerce expects international visits to the United States to come back in 2010 – after its first forecasted year of decline (i.e., 2009) since 2003.

This year, international travel to the United States is expected to fall 8%. The following year, however, U.S. travel exports are expected to gain 5%, with 5% annual increases through the end of 2013. We'll come out ahead in all this, but it's going to take some time.

Will the influx of foreign visitors over the next four years be enough to turn the travel industry in the United States around? It's too soon to tell right now, and much will depend on the contributions made by domestic routes. Needless to say, even this glimmer of hope must be welcome to investors committed to the airline and hotel sectors.

British Airways (LSE: BA) lost ₤375 million ($595 million) in the 12 months ending March 31, 2009. This is down from a profit of ₤712 million ($1.1 billion) the year before. The airline, which was privatized in 1987, has never sustained a loss this great. As a result, British Airways will not pay any dividends to shareholders -- or bonuses to the management team.

Weaker demand and spikes in fuel costs are cited as the reasons for the year-over-year record loss. Revenue was up 2.9% (₤8.99 billion) year-over-year, but this was not enough to offset a 45% increase in fuel costs -- to ₤2.97 billion. Demand problems struck in the fourth quarter, with revenue dropping 8.4% to ₤1.9 billion.

Its previous record loss was ₤200 million for the year ending in 2002.