The crisis has had unprecedented consequences in the air industry as well. But the recovery in China is shaping up to give hope to Westerners who are in the middle of a storm.
Airbus and Boeing are both announcing cancellations in their order books. On March 24, the European company demanded 15 billion euros in credit lines and renounced its 2020 forecasts. On 6 April, 75 aircraft from Boeing and 4 from Airbus were cancelled by the leasing company Avalon. Boeing has already suspended almost all production of its commercial aircraft, while Airbus is considering cutting back on its own production.
On the operators' side, light is beginning to appear at the end of the tunnel with the partial and controlled resumption of Emirates Airlines' activity to Paris as of Monday 6 April.
"As of April 6, flights will resume from Dubai to London (Heathrow), Frankfurt, Paris, Brussels and Zurich, with four flights a week to London and three to other cities." So says the airline.
IATA announces a 14.1% drop in traffic in February 2020, with a drop of up to 41% for Asian carriers. The effect is expected to be delayed in Europe and the Americas following the containment measures gradually introduced to cope with the development of the epidemic. The organization, through its Chief Executive Officer, announced that no aircraft manufacturer will order new aircraft in the next 6 to 9 months.
Some companies were already weakened before the pandemic, what will remain of them once the fight is over? On the other side of the Atlantic, the American Delta Airlines is announcing daily losses of 60 million dollars.
The sector is organising itself to limit the impact of the sudden stoppage of activity, and SETO has concluded an agreement with Air France KLM. Cancellations as of March 1 for group package tours may be postponed for up to 12 months and reimbursed after this period.
The gradual resumption of tourism activity in China is a ray of hope for professionals in the sector who are struggling on a daily basis to ensure the sustainability of their activities.