Garuda has shed more light on the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on its operations, with the cancellation of Hajj pilgrimage flights coming on top of the wider collapse in the air travel market. The pandemic has led to lower demand for air travel, a reduction in flight frequencies, and the need to implement additional health protocols for every operating flight, the state-owned carrier said in an 8 June stock exchange disclosure. It also notes that the decision of Indonesia’s Ministry of Religious Affairs on 2 June not to permit Indonesians to perform the Hajj this year due to the pandemic; Hajj flights typically contribute around 10% of its total revenue. The airline made the comments in response to a query by the Indonesia Stock Exchange, regarding two reports by news site on Garuda’s current performance. Garuda’s CE Irfan Setiaputra reportedly said its revenue had declined “by nearly 90%,” with the airline grounding 70% of its fleet and load factors now below 50%. Meanwhile, Garuda is expected to take a Rp3.4t ($243m) revenue hit from the cancellation of Hajj flights for the 2020 season. Garuda is also listed as one of the four carriers appointed by the Ministry of Religious Affairs to operate Hajj flights this year, alongside its low-cost subsidiary Citilink, as well as Saudi carriers Flynas and Saudia.<br/>
sky
Korean Air said Wednesday it has started boarding passengers from back to front to help stem the potential spread of the new coronavirus. On Wednesday, Korean Air began to apply the back-to-front boarding system on all of its domestic and international routes to minimize contact among passengers, the company said. Airlines usually have priority boarding for first class and business class passengers instead of having passengers in the last row enter the aircraft first. The move is in line with the government's social distancing policy. This month, Korean Air resumed flights on 19 international routes, as it strives to offset a sharp decline in passenger travel demand with increased demand for cargo deliveries. The resumption is aimed at preparing for increased travel demand after countries ease their entry restrictions on incoming passengers to stem the spread of COVID-19, the company said.<br/>
Delta is in talks to let Gol Linhas Inteligentes postpone payments on a $300m loan for which the US carrier is guarantor, two people familiar with the matter said. The loan matures in August. Negotiations are under way and a delay agreement is expected to be reached, the people said, asking not to be named because the discussions are private. No additional details were provided. Victor Mizusaki, an analyst at Banco Bradesco BBI SA, said in a June 5 email to clients that he expects the discussions to “conclude soon,” which should alleviate Gol’s cash position. Delta is guarantor of the five-year loan that Gol took out in August 2015, paying an annual interest rate of 6.5%. Morgan Stanley acted as administrative agent and representative of creditors, Gol said in a statement at the time. Voting shares issued by Smiles SA, the Brazilian airline’s mileage program, were used as collateral to Delta. When asked about the loan and talks, Gol referred to previous public statements, including a May conference call in which CFO Richard Freeman Lark Jr. said the company planned to pay the $300m term loan in August, as well as a local bond of about 150m reais ($27m) in September. <br/>