I don't think we need to apply absolutes here. It can be true both that it would be very difficult for airlines to keep cash reserves to cope with an event of t

I don't think we need to apply absolutes here. It can be true both that it would be very difficult for airlines to keep cash reserves to cope with an event of this scale and that keeping essentially zero cash reserves (in fact, American has been borrowing like crazy) is absolute negligence. If airlines are considered essential enough to the functioning of the country that they must be bailed out, they should also be run in a way that reflects that importance to society.