Coronavirus updates

Airlines are going bankrupt

Sorry for not posting anything recently. It's just been hard for me to fall into a new routine that wasn't; wake up at 7pm, eat everything in sight, go back to sleep until 2am then stay up until 6am texting my friends. But i'll go back to posting one chapter per day again.

(Yes i'm posting this at 5am... Deal with it).

Most airlines 'will be bankrupt by the end of May' because of coronavirus.

The coronavirus pandemic has hit the travel industry hard and risks bankrupting a swathe of airline companies, experts warn.

By the end of May, most airlines in the world will be bankrupt due to coronavirus, aviation analysts have said. The global pandemic may already have driven many air companies into technical bankruptcy, the Sydney-based consultancy CAPA Centre for Aviation warned in a statement today. It is calling on governments worldwide to work with the aviation industry and take action now to avoid a 'catastrophic' and complete shutdown thanks to Covid-19, warning: 'Cash reserves are running down quickly as fleets are grounded and what flights there are operate much less than half full.

'Forward bookings are far outweighed by cancellations and each time there is a new government recommendation it is to discourage flying. Demand is drying up in ways that are completely unprecedented. Normality is not yet on the horizon.' A British Airways plane at Venice Marco It warned of mixed messages from global governments that are busy 'grappling with the health challenges of coronavirus' with 'little instinct to act cooperatively'.

Boris leads coronavirus battle via video conference after testing positive In its statement, CAPA said: 'Today, as we contest a world health war against the coronavirus, the government response has been fragmented – and is being resolved along national lines, with limited consultation.

'As things stand, the likely tepid response to the airline crisis will equally be fragmented and nationally based. It will consist mostly of bailing out selected national airlines. 'If that is the default position, emerging from the crisis will be like entering a brutal battlefield, littered with casualties.' The consultancy group predicts the biggest airlines in the US, China and Middle East will survive because of government help or financial injections from their owners. But elsewhere, the travel and tourism industry is unlikely to survive. With the virus infecting nearly every sector of the global economy, concerns are growing the world will be catapulted into a damaging recession, leading to stock markets enduring horror losses and wild swings.

The UK government is set to discuss how to help the likes of Virgin Atlantic and easyJet to prevent collapse. British Airways owner, ICAG, slid 20 per cent after saying it would cut flying capacity by at least 75 per cent in April and May.

Shares in easyJet and TUI AG slumped 21 per cent and 24 per cent, respectively. From American Airlines to Australia's Qantas Airways the same slashing of capacity is being seen. Sweden's SAS AB have already temporarily laid off most staff while Lufthansa is reported to have asked for state aid and low-cost carrier Norwegian is pleading for help. Flybe, Europe's biggest regional airline, collapsed earlier this year citing coronavirus as the nail in the coffin, while British Airways CEO Alex Cruz sent a memo to staff last week telling them of plans to cut jobs and ground aircraft to tackle the 'worsening situation' caused by the disease. He described the virus as a crisis 'of global proportions like no other we have known'. According to the International Air Transport Association, global carriers could face as much as $113 billion in lost revenue this year.

CAPA said: 'There are enormous mutual interests in ensuring a healthy post-coronavirus-war airline regime. The vital tourism and travel industry – which has accounted for 20% of all new jobs in recent years, importantly in developing countries – has come to depend on a wide range of low fares and competition, with a multiplicity of entrants. 'Even before the worst of this pervasive health attack has washed through, it is imperative that the world's aviation forces – ICAO, the EU, IATA, the regional aviation associations and the key aviation nations – start the dialogue towards cooperation and establishing a 21st century regime that will truly satisfy the needs of the world's social and economic needs. Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe 'considered for clemency' as prison leave is extended 'Failure to coordinate the future will result in protectionism and much less competition. The alternative does not bear thinking about.'

peace out and stay safe 🤙
~careflower
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