The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent travel restrictions have posed an existential threat to the airline industry. While the ICAO broadly supports grounding flights, it states on its website that “longer-term restrictions are normally not effective once appropriate containment measures are in place.”
In the US and much of Europe, talk has now shifted to how and when to lift the current lockdown measures. For the aviation industry, this is a matter of survival.
The International Air Transport Association estimates that as many as 25 million jobs in the industry could be lost worldwide, and several airlines – Flybe and Germanwings to name but two – have already permanently ceased operations. Others, such as Virgin Atlantic, Lufthansa, and Air France, have pleaded for government bailouts.
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WHAT TO TAKE AWAY FROM THIS ARTICLE:
- The International Air Transport Association estimates that as many as 25 million jobs in the industry could be lost worldwide, and several airlines – Flybe and Germanwings to name but two – have already permanently ceased operations.
- In a statement released today, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), foretasted that by the end of 2020, airline passenger numbers will have fallen by more than 30% on the most recent figures from 2018.
- In the US and much of Europe, talk has now shifted to how and when to lift the current lockdown measures.
