World airlines have called on their respective governments to reopen the borders and also support the airlines and economies from collapsing even as the world battles the novel COVID 19 pandemic.
According to a report by guardian.ng, this plea was made under the apex platform for global airlines, the International Air Transport Association (IATA),which said the measures would speed up the recovery of airlines from near extinction since the pandemic broke out.
IATA, had on Tuesday, released its financial outlook for the global air transport industry which showed that airlines are may lose $84.3billion in 2020 for a net profit margin of -20.1 per cent.
Revenues will fall by 50 per cent to $419billion from $838billion in 2019. In 2021, losses are expected to be cut to $15.8billion as revenues rise to $598billion.
Alexandre de Juniac , IATA’s Director General and CEO, had said financially, 2020 is making a negative history as the worst year in aviation history.
“On average, every day of this year will add $230 million to industry losses. In total that’s a loss of $84.3 billion. It means that—based on an estimate of 2.2 billion passengers this year—airlines will lose $37.54 per passenger. That’s why government financial relief was and remains crucial as airlines burn through cash,” IATA boss added.
Recall that IATA had predicted that half of the world’s biggest airlines may go extinct if there are no immediate and conscious measures by their host governments to support them in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
By Francis Ogwo
SOURCE: guardian.ng
