US carriers American Airlines and United Airlines pulled back furlough orders of nearly 27,000 employees after US Congress passed a $1.9 trillion Covid-19 stimulus bill on Wednesday, according to ABC News. The <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/the-americas/us-congress-passes-1-9-trillion-covid-stimulus-bill-1.1181921">bill</a>, which includes an extension of the Payroll Support Programme (PSP), is expected to be signed by the US President Joe Biden on Friday. “For our 13,000 colleagues who received worker adjustment and retraining notification notices last month, those are happily cancelled … you can tear them up,” ABC News cited American chief executive Doug Parker as saying in a letter to employees. Last month, Texas-based American sent furlough notices to 13,000 employees as federal aid was due to expire this month. The Illinois-based United also warned almost 14,000 of its staff in January that they might be furloughed. "By extending PSP, our teams will be able to remain current in their training and ready to match expected future demand," United chief executive, Scott Kirby, said in a message to employees<strong>. </strong> "Thousands of frontline workers will now receive pay cheques and health care through September, which is especially critical while vaccine distribution continues to ramp up,"<strong> </strong>he added. After voluntary leaves and early retirements over the past year, United said its workforce totalled 74,400 at the end of 2020, down 22 per cent from a year before. US airlines have furloughed more than 38,000 workers since October 1, including large swathes at American and United, according to Bloomberg. Aviation is one the worst hit industries during the Covid-19 pandemic, which brought the industry to a grinding halt last year and airlines across the globe had to ground fleets amid border closures and travel restrictions to curb the spread of the virus. Many airlines have been rescued through bailout packages as <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/travel-and-tourism/global-tourism-industry-loses-1-3-trillion-in-2020-due-to-pandemic-1.1155932">global air passenger traffic</a> is unlikely to recover to pre-Covid-19 levels before 2024, a year later than previously expected, the International Air Transport Association said in January.