EasyJet has warned that the impact of the coronavirus may force it to ground “the majority” of its fleet and threatens the viability of the aviation industry in Europe. The carrier is extending its cancellations in an effort to slash costs and preserve cash, and is “in ongoing discussions with liquidity providers”, it says. “European aviation faces a precarious future, and it is clear that co-ordinated govt backing will be required to ensure the industry survives and is able to continue to operate when the crisis is over,” states CE Johan Lundgren. The carrier expects to make further cancellations over the coming days, but will continue to offer rescue flights in order to allow citizens to return to their home countries. Grounding its fleet will remove a “significant” level of cost, it says. <br/>
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Ryanair expects to park the majority of its fleet over the next week to 10 days as the impact of the coronavirus escalates, and could suspend all of its services for April and May. “We have seen a substantial decline in bookings over the last two weeks, and we expect this will continue for the foreseeable future,” says the carrier. “We will continue to monitor demand, as well as govt flight restrictions, and we will continue to make further cuts to schedules as necessary.” It highlights that over the past week Italy, Malta, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, Greece, Morocco, Spain, Portugal, Denmark, Poland, Norway and Cyprus have each imposed some form of flight ban. For April and May it expects to reduce its seat capacity by up to 80%, and cannot rule out a full grounding of the fleet. <br/>
Norwegian is suspending a big majority of its services and laying off 7,300 employees as it seeks to weather the coronavirus outbreak. “The Covid-19 situation is escalating by the hour and due to stagnating demand and enforced travel restrictions by authorities worldwide, Norwegian will gradually cancel most of its flights and temporarily lay off a major share of its workforce,” the airline says. Calling the crisis “unprecedented and critical”, Norwegian’s CE Jacob Schram states that the carrier has no choice but to “temporarily” lay off 90% of its workforce, including pilots, cabin crew, maintenance and administrative staff. From March 21, Norwegian will fly a reduced scheduled domestically in Norway and between the Nordic capitals, as well as some European flights. <br/>
Virgin Atlantic will reduce its flight schedule by 80% and park three-quarters of its fleet by March 26, in addition to asking staff to take 5 weeks of unpaid leave as it seeks to conserve cash and safeguard its future. The carrier says it is taking the “drastic measures” in response to the ongoing coronavirus crisis, which has resulted in “a huge volume of cancellations as customers choose to stay at home”. Virgin Atlantic will ground 75% of its fleet by March 26, rising to 85% in April, as it slashes its flight schedule to focus on “core routes” which will be determined by customer demand. The airline’s London Heathrow-Newark service is being “permanently terminated with immediate effect”. To further reduce costs, Virgin Atlantic is offering a one-time voluntary severance package to all employees and a sabbatical of 6 to 12 months. <br/>
Icelandair Group is expecting a summer season capacity cut of at least 25% on the previous forecasts, and is working with unions to secure salary reductions. The airline operates a business model based on transatlantic connections via Reykjavik, and has been hit by US-European travel restrictions linked to the coronavirus outbreak. Icelandair Group says it has already adjusted capacity by up to 30% and that this is likely to be trimmed further while such restrictive measures are in effect. The operator is experiencing “significantly decreased” demand on its markets and is assuming capacity for the summer, while uncertain, will still be 25% lower, at least, than previously estimated. It has not been able to determine the financial impact of the situation. <br/>