Covid-19 Impacts the Airline Industry: $113 Billion on the Line

Team Industry Outlook | Friday, 06 March 2020

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The aviation industry is on the verge of losing a net amount of $113 Billion on global bookings owing to the Covid-19 outbreak in China. The economy for several countries has severely collapsed owing to the Coronavirus outbreak and several nations have banned international travel until late April, 2020. IATA has announced that loses to the airlines industry will be equivalent to the loss that took place back in 2008. It has also been predicted that the aviation industry as a whole will lose 19 percent of the global business if immediate cure for Coronavirus is not invented.

"The turn of events as a result of the Coronavirus is almost without precedent. In a little over two

months, the industry's prospects in most parts of the world have taken a dramatic turn," Alexandre de Juniac, CEO of the industry group expressed in a statement to media. "It is unclear how the virus will develop, but this is a crisis", he added.

Major airlines across the world have closed down most of their flights to the Coronavirus affected regions. They have even implemented cost cutting measures and close to 1000 flights from all across the world have been shut down. The global airlines industry that was valued $838 Billion last year has been predicted to face a loss amounting from $63 Billion to $113 Billion depending upon the time taken to invent the cure.

"All flights have been grounded and the UK business has ceased trading with immediate effect," Flybe expressed to media. Many other international and domestic aviation companies have shut down a major part of their operations which is likely to continue until end of April.

CEO to Ryanair, Michael O’Leary said that the Corovirus impact will result in bankruptcies of aviation companies. Where you have a massive short-term decline in bookings you have a massive short-term decline in cash flow," he said.

"I don't believe it's appropriate for governments to provide state aid to airlines that were not sustainable before the Coronavirus," said Willie Walsh, CEO, British Airways.