Airlines face weeks of uncertainty as Omicron stalls travel

Airlines face an uncertain few weeks over the holidays and into January as the spread of the omicron coronavirus variant upends what’s traditionally one of the busiest periods of the year for flight sales. Discount giant Ryanair Holdings Plc slashed its earnings guidance Wednesday as travel restrictions related to the strain weakened Christmas and New Year bookings, while Deutsche Lufthansa AG said Thursday it plans to cut about 10% of its winter schedule. Other European carriers will likely be assessing their capacity plans, according to Sanford C. Bernstein analyst Alex Irving. “Ryanair, EasyJet and Wizz Air all operate in broadly the same market,” Irving said. “It’s highly unlikely the same pressures affecting Ryanair aren’t hitting other airlines.” Although airline stocks rallied Thursday following reports that omicron is likely not as severe as previous iterations of Covid-19, countries across Europe are bringing back travel restrictions and even lockdowns. Britain is battling record daily case numbers and France and Germany’s ban on UK travelers was part of the reason for the gloom at Dublin-based Ryanair.<br/>