Were US airline bailouts really needed?

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Interesting piece in the New York Times looking at the US airline bailout programmes. While 75,000 jobs were saved, it was at a cost of $300,000 each. And it is airline shareholders who have made the most gains – many of which are of course airline executives who failed to save for a rainy day, instead opting for share buyback programmes over the years. Aviation received more support than any other industry in the US – and yet last month, United, shortly before receiving its third rescue package, invested $20m into an electric helicopter company. As the NYT notes: “Does that sound like a company that is in such dire straits that it requires a taxpayer-funded bailout?” Quite.