Airlines are braced for a grim winter after struggling under the weight of booming demand for travel in the summer as the economic slowdown threatens their recovery from the pandemic. The dire outlook has prompted warnings that passenger numbers could fall as household disposable incomes come under pressure from high inflation and soaring energy bills. Despite upgrading its passenger forecasts, London’s Gatwick said the uncertainty on the economy was a big threat to an industry already shaken by rising fuel costs and staff shortages. “It could impact the overall propensity for travel,” said Jim Butler, Gatwick’s CFO. Although airlines have not reported a significant hit to bookings, he stressed that he was “cautious about what we might see in the winter or next year”. While it might not affect many people’s ability to take a big annual holiday, Butler said, it could weigh on demand for “the second or third trip”. One senior European airline executive said the “outlook is still very uncertain” for the winter, particularly as the end of the summer is never a strong booking period. He expected less demand for leisure travel in the fourth quarter, including a reduction in shorter city breaks. Instead, he expected bookings to cluster around typically busy periods, such as school half-term holidays and Christmas. It would mean a further blow to airlines and their share prices, which have been under pressure even as demand surged over the summer with airports and carriers struggling to cope with a flood of bookings. The MSCI index of European airline shares has lost 15 per cent this year, with major airline groups including British Airways owner International Airlines Group, Ryanair and Air France-KLM down about 30%. “There is a lot of negativity on airline stocks . . . people are saying you don’t usually buy airlines into a recession,” said Stephen Furlong, an analyst at Davy.<br/>
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The British government on Tuesday launched an independent review of the country's Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) as part of a wider programme to ensure the effectiveness and efficiency of public bodies. The review includes ensuring the highest standards of aviation safety and security are being maintained, efficient use of airspace, space operations and protecting consumer rights, the government said in a statement.<br/>
Singapore’s aviation sector will have to employ an additional 3,500 to 4,000 workers by the end of the year to cope with the expected surge in travel during the northern hemisphere winter season, transport minister S. Iswaran said. From October, Singapore needs to prepare for flights to reach about 80% of 2019 levels from the current 64%, he said on Tuesday. Passenger numbers are now averaging 58%, a steady increase since Singapore reopened its borders five months before him. Regarding the need for manpower to meet the increased traffic, Iswaran said the sector has cut about 10,000 workers over the past two years. That’s about a third of his 35,000 workers in 2019 before the Covid-19 pandemic. In the first six months of the year, we have already hired over 4,000 people. In addition, he will employ 4,000 people, bringing the headcount level to around 33,000. “This is an extraordinary feat. Not just in terms of numbers, it’s a very rapid increase, but we also need to make sure the people involved are trained to be prepared for the operational requirements,” Iswaran said. I was. when he visited Terminal 4 of Changi Airport. “This is a major exercise and all stakeholders are very focused on it.”<br/>