First half losses prompt special LOT board meeting

The supervisory board of LOT Polish Airlines will meet in special session today to discuss the company's poor financial performance. The meeting, held at the request of employees' representatives, comes in the wake of a financial statement issued yesterday, which revealed that LOT's net losses more than tripled in the first half of the year, to zl.251.7 million. According to the Rzeczpospolita daily, the LOT board of directors has already drafted a program of action aimed at improving the company's profitability. One proposal is to limit to just three the number of long-haul Boeing 767 aircraft in operation during the winter, which would inevitably result in a reduction in LOT's transatlantic services. The company has already announced plans to cut the size of its workforce by some 600 to 800. (Rzeczpospolita, p. B1; Reuters) P.J.