BackAirlines facing serious demand slump, warns IATA
Barring Vistara, all domestic carriers have seen a decline in their passenger load factor in JanuaryAs the fears of coronavirus becoming a pandemic are increasing, several companies are restricting business travel
PremiumNEW DELHI : Airline industry lobby group the International Air Transport Association (IATA) on Tuesday warned that the coronavirus crisis has dealt a severe blow to air traffic and that carriers are facing a serious decline in demand.
The coronavirus threat comes amid an economic slowdown in India which has already affected the capacity utilisation of domestic carriers. Barring Vistara, all domestic carriers have seen a decline in their passenger load factor in January compared to December 2019. India on Monday reported the first case of coronavirus in the national capital.
As the fears of the virus becoming a pandemic are increasing, several companies globally are restricting business travel of employees, which is impacting the aviation industry. India on Monday extended the universal screening of passengers coming in flights from coronavirus affected countries to Iran and Italy.
“Future bookings are softening and carriers are reacting with measures such as crew being given unpaid leave, freezing of pay increases, and plans for aircraft to be grounded," IATA said.
The industry body also urged governments worldwide to suspend the rules governing use of airport slots for the 2020 season as carriers not fulfilling their targets due to flight cancelations in the wake of the coronavirus crisis face the risk of losing their slots.
The industry body said around 43% of all passengers depart from over 200 slot coordinated airports worldwide and rules for slot allocation mean that airlines must operate at least 80% of their allocated slots under normal circumstances. “Failure to comply with this means the airline loses its right to the slot the next equivalent season," IATA said in a statement on Monday.
It said that the collective view of the airline industry is that the application of the 80% rule during the upcoming season is inappropriate and that flexibility is needed for airlines to adjust their schedules according to extraordinary demand developments.
Suspending the requirement for the entire season (to October 2020) will mean that airlines can respond to market conditions with appropriate capacity levels, avoiding any need to run empty services in order to maintain slots, the industry body said. Aircraft can be reallocated to other routes or parked and crew can have certainty on their schedules, it said.
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