unaligned

Emirates airline said it would no longer carry to Saudi Arabia passengers with Umrah pilgrimage visas or tourists from nearly 2 dozen countries until further notice, in compliance with a Saudi government directive to contain the coronavirus outbreak. Holders of Saudi tourist visas travelling from China, Japan, Italy, Iran, India, Pakistan and a number of other countries will be barred from boarding Emirates flights with Saudi Arabia as the final destination, the airline said. Saudi Arabia has temporarily suspended as of Thursday entry to the kingdom for the purpose of Umrah and visiting the Prophet’s Mosque in response to the global coronavirus outbreak. Entry has also been suspended for those coming from countries in which the spread of the virus is a danger, based on health authority criteria. <br/>

AirAsia Group has reported a full-year net loss of MYR286m (US$67.9m) for 2018, after a MYR1.7b net profit the previous year. The airline group says the negative result was due partly to “accounting treatment” associated with its move from owning to leasing aircraft, and partly to losses at AirAsia India. Revenue rose 17% to MYR12.4n. The group narrowed its Q4 net loss to MYR385m from MYR457m in the corresponding period of 2018. Q4 revenue was up 19% at MYR3.4b. AirAsia Philippines unit “turned profitable” in 2019 while losses narrowed at AirAsia Indonesia, the group notes. Acting CE Bo Lingam acknowledges that the coronavirus outbreak has made for a “challenging start to 2020”, but says the group is in a good position to recover quickly. <br/>