The airline industry is the latest to report its finances are in a tail-spin.

On July 15 representatives pleaded for help from Washington.

On July 16 they backed up their fears with figures.

Newly released numbers for the second quarter add up to more turbulent times for the airline industry, all mostly blamed on the sky-high price of fuel.

"We are literally seeing the industry melting down before our eyes," said John Meenan, with the Air Transport Association.

Air travel industry representatives sounded the alarm at a Congressional hearing on July 15, presenting sobering facts and an urgent call to end oil speculation.

Their testimony swayed both sides of the aisle.

"The administration's got its head in the sand on speculation," stated Sen. Ted Stevens, (R, AK).

"We must do something to control it."

"I believe that our commercial aviation system is teetering, frankly, on the brink of collapse," declared Sen. Jay Rockefeller, (D, WV).

Eight carriers have already gone out of business, two have declared bankruptcy, and two more are on the brink of doing the same.

These desperate times are producing desperate measures.

Airlines are laying off workers, cutting flights and forgoing in-flight movies to cut costs, while getting creative when it comes to bringing in more cash, charging for checked baggage, adding fees for using frequent-flier miles, even allowing ads on boarding passes.

Just how much these new fees and cost-cutting measures will go in making up for fuel costs remains to be seen.

Some experts say even if the price per barrel of oil drops as much as $30, that won't bring back the lost jobs or lost capacity.

Despite the red ink, Delta is moving forward with plans to acquire Northwest Airlines.

That merger would create the world's largest air carrier.

Due to the recent drop in oil prices, Wednesday's losses by American Airlines and Delta Airlines beat analysts' expectations.