Delta started 2020 celebrating what it said was the most successful year in company history. Not long after, it shared a record $1.6b in profits with its 90,000 employees. But with air travel nearly shut down by the coronavirus, the airline is now bleeding money and will drop 10 more airports from its already skeletal network on Wednesday. Even as Delta and the other major airlines in the US dramatically slash schedules, they are averaging an anemic 23 passengers on each domestic flight and losing $350-$400m a day as expenses like payroll, rent and aircraft maintenance far exceed the money they are bringing in. Passenger traffic is down about 94% and half of the industry’s 6,215 planes are parked at major airports and desert airstrips, according to Airlines for America. Yet, devastating as the downturn has been, the future is even more bleak. With much of the world closed for business, and no widely available vaccine in sight, it may be months, if not years, before airlines operate as many flights as they did before the crisis. Even when people start flying again, the industry could be transformed, much as it was after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. And airline executives need only look in the not-distant past to see how lesser crises sank carriers that were household names like Pan Am and Trans World Airlines. The current crisis could push some airlines, especially smaller ones, into bankruptcy or make them takeover targets. Consumer fears about catching the virus on crowded planes could lead to reconfigured seating. Carriers may initially entice wary travelers with discounts, but if they can’t fill up flights, they may resort to raising ticket prices. Story has more details.<br/>
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A major US airline trade group Saturday said it backed the US TSA checking the temperatures of passengers and customer-facing employees during the coronavirus pandemic. Airlines for America said the checks "will add an extra layer of protection for passengers as well as airline and airport employees. Temperature checks also will provide additional public confidence that is critical to relaunching air travel and our nation’s economy." A US official said Saturday no decision has been made on whether to mandate the checks, but said the issue is the subject of extensive talks among government agencies and with US airlines and added a decision could potentially be made as early as next week. One possible route would be for a pilot project or to initially begin temperature checks at the largest US airports. Questions remain about what the government would do if someone had a high temperature and was turned away from a flight. US officials said the temperature checks would not eliminate the risk of coronavirus cases but could act as a deterrent to prevent people who were not feeling well from travelling. TSA Administrator David Pekoske told employees during a town hall meeting Wednesday that no decision had been made regarding possible temperature checks of passengers at airports and that questions remained about where such checks might take place and which agency might perform them. A TSA spokesman did not immediately comment Saturday.<br/>
Britain’s travel industry has warned that a lengthy quarantine period for all people arriving in Britain from abroad would be a “nightmare” that would badly hurt a sector already in meltdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The prospect of a period of quarantine, being imposed “on people coming into this country by air”, was outlined by the prime minister in his Sunday night address. It sparked alarm from the travel industry and the aviation sector. The quarantine period is part of the government’s strategy to relax some of the lockdown measures that were introduced to slow the spread of coronavirus. Boris Johnson did not say when the quarantine requirements would take effect, or how long people would be required to isolate. However, there has been speculation it is likely to be 14 days. Steven Freudmann, chairman of the Institute of Travel and Tourism, said: “The travel industry is already in meltdown, so it’s not an exaggeration to say that a 14-day quarantine imposed on all overseas arrivals in the UK would have a devastating impact. “Who is going to book a city break in Paris or Barcelona or even a week on the Mediterranean, only to face a 14-day isolation period on their return? Which employers are going to grant a month’s holiday to those taking a two-week break? It’s a bad dream turning into a nightmare!” The aviation sector was first to sound the alarm at the prospect of a quarantine period over the weekend. Karen Dee, CE of the Airport Operators Association, said a quarantine would have a “devastating impact” on the UK aviation industry and on the wider economy.<br/>
The aviation regulator has warned airlines could face legal action if they mishandle cancelled flight refunds. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said it was reviewing how airlines were dealing with customer refunds during the coronavirus pandemic. By law, plane operators must refund customers within seven days if their flight is cancelled. But with most fleets grounded, airlines are struggling to cope with all the requests for refunds and are delaying paying out or directing customers to vouchers. The CAA said: "Under the law, consumers are entitled to receive a refund for their cancelled flights, despite the challenges the industry is currently facing. We support airlines offering consumers vouchers and rebooking alternatives where it makes sense for the consumer. But it is important that consumers are given a clear option to request a cash refund without unnecessary barriers." The regulator said it did not expect airlines to "systematically" deny consumers their right to a refund and they should provide the monies "as soon as practically possible."<br/>
Inbound international flights for repatriating Filipinos may resume on Monday, after the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) released on Friday a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) announcing the lifting of the suspension that was recently imposed. This was done in adherence to the directive of the National Task Force (NTF) against COVID-19. The NOTAM states that inbound international charter flights will only be allowed to land at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) on Mondays and Thursdays, provided that necessary clearances are secured from the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and CAAP for slotting purposes. Meanwhile, scheduled inbound international commercial flights will be allowed to land at the NAIA on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, provided that they secure approval from CAAP 48 hours before their scheduled departure from the airport of origin. This is to properly coordinate the necessary slotting and rescheduling of flights to subscribe to the 400 passengers per day capacity of NAIA, as imposed by the IATF. The restrictions, which will run from May 11 to June 10, 2020, shall only apply to NAIA. Other international airports in the country may have imposed their individual restrictions, upon coordination and approval by the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases.<br/>
When Sir Richard Branson marked the 25th anniversary of Virgin Atlantic in 2009, he and the model Kate Moss posed on the wing of a Boeing 747. This symbol of the jet age was the only option for the billionaire showman. But a decade later, the plane has become a symbolic casualty of the chaos engulfing the airline industry during the coronavirus pandemic. Last week, Virgin Atlantic said it would retire all seven of its 747s. More than 1,500 of the jumbo jets have been delivered over the 52 years it has been in service, but analysts say the savage decline in passenger traffic as governments seek to contain the spread of Covid-19 could hasten the decline of the plane. Lufthansa last month brought forward the retirement of five 747s. KLM has also confirmed that its jumbos will not return to the skies under its livery, as has France’s Corsair, accelerating the shift to newer models. That adds to plans from BA to scrap its 28 747s by 2024; the largest remaining operator of the planes in the world made the announcement in early 2019. The arrival of newer plane models at a time of low demand leaves the ageing jumbo in an unenviable position. The 747 saw off the challenge of the Airbus A380 superjumbo, which ends production next year, but it still faces many of the problems that ultimately grounded its closest rival. Larger planes are only worthwhile financially on longer-distance, popular routes, making them less flexible for airlines. Smaller, newer aircraft are now capable of flying longer routes as well as short-haul, making them more attractive as the industry faces up to months or even years of slow recovery in air passenger demand once lockdown restrictions are eased.<br/>
When Embraer’s $4.2b joint venture deal with Boeing collapsed late last month, the Brazilian aircraft manufacturer was clear about its next steps. Immediately, the company issued a sharp rebuke, accusing Boeing of manufacturing “false claims” in order to jettison the deal to acquire its regional jet business. It then launched arbitration proceedings, seeking to claw back tens of millions of dollars it had already spent in preparation. “We believe Boeing has engaged in a systematic pattern of delay and repeated violations of the [proposed deal], because of its unwillingness to complete the transaction in light of its own financial condition and . . . reputational problems,” Embraer said, in allegations that were denied by Boeing. The US group, in turn, accused Embraer of failing to fulfil preconditions of the deal. Beyond the fiery first response, however, the longer-term options for the Brazilian industrial champion are far from clear. The Boeing deal was years in the making and was expected to be a game-changer for both the sector and the company. Embraer must now swiftly reorient and make crucial decisions about the direction of its business at a time when the industry is facing an unprecedented crisis. “They have a huge challenge,” said Ricardo Fenelon, a former director of the Brazilian Civil Aviation Agency. “The challenge is even bigger because of the Covid-19 situation, which is the largest crisis in the history of the sector.” Story has more details.<br/>