Airlines sound the alarm over the expanding effects of coronavirus
US, WASHINGTON (ORDO NEWS) — Fears in the aviation industry intensified on Thursday after the Australian airline Qantas Airways Ltd asked most of its 30,000 employees to take leave, and the German Lufthansa said the sector could not survive without state support if the outbreak of a coronavirus lasts a long time time.
“The spread of coronavirus has put the entire global economy and our company in an unprecedented state of emergency,” said Lufthansa CEO Karsten Spor.
“At the moment, no one can predict the consequences.”
Other senior industry officials are also calling for government support. Airlines around the world are experiencing a sharp drop in passenger traffic due to the coronavirus epidemic and related restrictions spanning more and more countries.
President Donald Trump last week announced a 30-day ban on entering the United States from Europe, responding to calls for action to curb the rapidly spreading coronavirus epidemic.
Since March 16, Russia has limited air traffic with EU countries, Switzerland and Norway.
On Wednesday, the Russian government said it would limit flights from Russia to Britain, the United States, and the UAE from March 20 to the other.
Russian airlines estimated their losses from flight closures due to coronavirus at more than 100 billion rubles, and the Federal Air Transport Agency sees the risks of bankruptcy of airlines, Russian agencies said with reference to the head of the department, Alexander Neradko.
Restrictions on flights due to coronavirus affected about 40% of the international airline transportation market of Russian airlines, the Association of Air Transport Operators (AEWT) said in a letter to the Minister of Transport of the Russian Federation and proposed to reset the VAT on all domestic flights.
The Trump administration on Wednesday asked Congress to approve $ 50 billion worth of secured loans to local airlines to help deal with the epidemic.
“Unfortunately, this is no ordinary rainy day,” said Nate Gatten, senior vice president of American Airlines American Airlines.
“These are extraordinary circumstances, and additional support is needed to protect jobs and ensure that the flying public can continue to rely on our industry after the crisis ends.”
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The article is written and prepared by our foreign editors from different countries around the world – material edited and published by Ordo News staff in our US newsroom press.
