Going by the latest quarterly reports of US' leading carriers, while United Airlines and Southwest Airlines managed to post small profits - in spite of plunging revenue and passenger number - Continental Airlines reported a $213 billion loss for the quarter ending June 30.

The Dallas-based Southwest Airlines reported a $54 million second-quarter profit; and the Chicago-based United Airlines posted a profit of $28 million. Meanwhile, the Houston-based Continental Airlines' net loss of $213 million came on its $3.1 billion revenue.

According to Tuesday reports, the carriers are planning additional layoffs and capacity cuts during the current quarter, for further coping with the volatile fuel prices and a fall in business travel.

In a conference call, Continental Airlines' executives said that the carrier intends laying-off nearly 1,700 employees - that is, almost 4 percent of its 43,000-strong work force - including those in clerical and managerial positions.

The low-fare Southwest Airlines said that 1,400 of its employees have accepted voluntary buyouts.

United said that, after Labor Day, it would be reducing its international capacity - seats and flights - by another 7 percent.

Commenting on the difficulties faced by the carriers, Southwest Chairman and CEO Gary Kelly said: "We're all suffering from a significant decline in business travel demand. We've detected a slight improvement in July, but post-summer we are prepared for significant continued weakness on the revenue front."