VOA慢速英语2020 美国航空公司呼吁公众乘机出行（在线收听）

Airline Companies Struggle to Persuade Public to Fly

The U.S. airline industry continues to face major financial losses after a sharp drop in air travel caused by the coronavirus crisis.

冠状病毒危机导致航空旅行量大幅下降后，美国航空业面临的巨大财务亏损仍在持续。

The airlines are attempting to persuade Americans that it is safe to fly even as COVID-19 infections have been rising in some areas. The companies say measures such as requiring face masks and operating hospital-quality air cleaners make sitting in an airplane safer than many other indoor settings.

尽管某些地区新冠肺炎的感染率还在不断上升，但航空公司仍试图说服美国人民乘坐飞机旅行是安全的。这些公司称，航空公司要求乘坐人员佩戴口罩，使用医院同等质量的空气净化器等各项措施的实施使其比其它许多室内环境都更加安全。

Public opinion studies, however, have suggested that many people still do not feel good about getting on a plane. In a June study by Consumer Reports of 1,000 people, 70 percent said they believed flying was either very or somewhat unsafe. Those questioned said they thought going to a hospital emergency room or standing in line to vote was safer than getting on a plane. In another study requested by an airline trade group, the biggest concern of travelers was the possibility of sitting next to an infected person.

然而舆论研究表明，许多人仍然对乘坐飞机感到不安。6月份消费者报告对1000人进行的一项调查显示，70%的人认为乘坐飞机要么非常不安全，要么有点不安全。被调查者说，他们认为去医院急诊室或排队投票都比坐飞机更安全。在另一项由航空贸易集团要求进行的研究中，旅客们最担心的是遇到邻座被感染的机率。

John Kontak is a schoolteacher from Phoenix, Arizona. He told The Associated Press he had this fear as soon as he stepped onto a crowded American Airlines flight this summer to Ohio.

约翰·康塔克是亚利桑那州凤凰城的一名教师。他告诉美联社记者，今年夏天他一踏上美国航空公司飞往俄亥俄州的拥挤的航班时就有这种恐惧。

"I don't know anything about this person who is sitting a foot away from me," Kontak said. "They took the bottom line or the dollar over the safety of passengers. Next time, I'd rather drive back to Ohio than fly — it's safer because I can control it."

康塔克说：“我对这个坐在离我仅一英尺远的人一无所知。他们守住了乘客安全问题的底线。下一次我宁愿开车回俄亥俄州也不愿坐飞机——开车更安全，而且一切在我掌控中。”

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says sitting within 2 meters of other passengers, often for hours, may increase the risk of getting COVID-19. But the CDC also notes that most viruses and other germs do not spread easily on flights because of how air circulates on planes.

美国疾病控制和预防中心称，座位距离其他乘客两米远且一坐就是几小时可能会增加感染新冠肺炎的风险。但是疾病预防控制中心也指出，由于飞机上空气的流通方式，大多数病毒和其他细菌在飞机上不容易传播。

Public fears about airplane infections have resulted in major financial difficulties for the airlines. Several leading carriers have already sought bankruptcy protection and others could follow if the current economic climate continues.

公众对坐飞机感染病毒的担忧致使航空公司面临巨大财政困难。几家领先的航空公司已经寻求破产保护，如果当前的经济环境继续下去，其他航空公司可能也会效仿。

The four largest U.S. airlines lost a combined $10 billion from April through June. While company leaders say they think they will survive, they have lowered their expectations for a quick recovery.

从4月到6月，美国四大航空公司总共损失了100亿美元。虽然公司领导们表示他们认为自己能挺过去，但他们已经降低了对迅速复苏的期望。

"We were all hoping that by the fall the virus might run its course," said Southwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly. "Obviously, that has proven to be dead wrong."

西南航空首席执行官加里·凯利表示：“我们都希望到秋天病毒会终止。但显然这一期望已被证明是大错特错的。”

Effect on international carriers

对国际航空公司的影响

Internationally, air travel is down more than 85 percent from a year ago, industry data shows.

国际航空业数据显示，与一年前相比航空旅行下降了85%多。

The International Air Transport Association has predicted air carriers will lose $84 billion this year, making it the worst year in the industry's history. The group says traffic will likely not fully recover until 2024.

国际航空运输协会预测，航空公司今年将亏损840亿美元——成为航空业历史上最糟糕的一年。该组织称，航空交通可能要到2024年才能完全恢复。

Asia, where coronavirus outbreaks were brought under control earlier, is doing better than the U.S. and Europe. Air travel within China has recovered to about two-thirds its level from a year ago. In the U.S., air traffic is less than one-third of 2019 levels.

亚洲的情况比美国和欧洲好——那里的冠状病毒疫情早就得到了控制。中国国内的航空旅行已恢复到约达一年前的三分之二的水平。而美国的航空交通量还不到2019年水平的三分之一。

Air traffic at Europe's more than 500 airports has dropped sharply, down 94 percent in June compared with the same month last year. There were about 4 million passengers, compared with 217 million a year earlier.

欧洲500多个机场的空中交通量急剧下降，与去年同期相比下降了94%。乘客人数约为400万人，而一年前为2.17亿人。

Travel began rising when many European countries reopened borders in early July. But virus cases are now rising in several nations, leading to the restart of restrictions. This week, Britain placed a 14-day quarantine requirement on travelers — even Britons returning home — from France and the Netherlands. Travel from outside Europe, including the United States, is still restricted.

当7月初许多欧洲国家重新开放边境时，旅行量开始有所增加。但由于几个国家的病毒病例正在上升，导致限制措施又重新开始实施。本周，英国对从法国和荷兰来国的游客(甚至是回国的英国人)提出了为期14天的检疫隔离要求。欧洲境外地区，包括美国来自的旅客仍然受到限制。