2020 would be the worst year in the history of aviation, says IATA

Airlines around the world including British Airways, Air France, easyJet and Lufthansa Group have announced plans to cut thousands of jobs as they grapple with the coronavirus crisis.

“We also have concerns about employment related to the air travel industry, tourism, entertainment, all these industries which are severely impacted by the COVID-19 crisis, directly and indirectly, due to the air travel reduction,” de Juniac said.

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“WORST YEAR IN HISTORY”

In June, IATA warned that 2020 would be “the worst year in the history of aviation” and that airlines are expected to lose 84.3 billion U.S. dollars this year alone.

“We are still asking governments to help us. The first set of measures that had been announced by governments had been significant,”

de Juniac told Xinhua.

“But things should not stop, because the crisis is not over. So we are still asking governments to put money into the industry if they want to keep strong airlines and good connectivity for their country which is absolutely key for the economic recovery.”

The head of the body representing global airlines also said he was concerned about reduced corporate travel as companies continue to be under financial pressure even as the economy improves.

“We will recover. This is an industry that has already faced many shocks and crises, so we will recover,” de Juniac stressed. “Business travel is more at risk because people are now using virtual tools, computers, tablets and web-based technologies to organize meetings.”

De Juniac also said the sector was still committed to reaching its emission-reduction goals and prioritizing investment in sustainable aviation fuels despite the pandemic.

“The goals we have committed to, which are to be carbon neutral starting 2021 and to reduce our CO2 emissions by half in 2050, we are still committed to do that, and we will do it,” he told Xinhua.

“I am not worried about our environmental commitments. The industry is committed, we will do it,” he stressed.

The aviation industry has agreed to cap carbon emissions to half the 2005 levels by 2050.

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Source: by Martina Fuchs (GENEVA, XINHUA)