Argentine budget airlines say government blindsided them with travel ban

Argentina's two low-cost airlines Tuesday accused its Peronist government of lying about whether the implementation of an air travel ban to combat the coronavirus had been discussed with the industry beforehand. Earlier this week, Argentina prohibited all commercial flights and ticket sales until Sept. 1, making for one of the toughest travel bans currently in place around the world. The carriers, which compete with the country's largest airline, Aerolineas Argentinas, which is state-owned and funded by taxpayers, said they were blindsided and accused the government of ignoring the concerns of the private air travel industry. "We had no idea that a discussion about (the travel ban) existed, least of all that a decision had been made," said Estuardo Ortíz, the CEO of JetSMART, which recently started domestic flights in Argentina.<br/>