The pandemic will cause losses of $ 200 billion in the aviation industry

According to association estimates, the corona pandemic will cause losses of more than 200 billion US dollars in the aviation industry. For this year, a minus of 52 billion dollars (currently 44.7 billion euros) is expected, said the general director of the global airline association IATA, Willie Walsh. At the same time, the low point of the crisis has passed. For the coming year, the organization still expects red numbers of around twelve billion dollars, until the bottom line is that the industry will be profitable again in 2023. Last year, with the drastic slump in air traffic, airlines posted a worldwide loss of 138 billion dollars, according to IATA figures. The airlines would have received $ 243 billion in government support, of which around 110 billion would have to be repaid. At the same time, Walsh said that not all airlines would benefit equally from the recovery in the coming year. International air traffic will continue to be lower than it used to be. Despite the difficult financial situation, the industry decided, under increasing pressure, to fly climate-neutral by 2050. This requires a combination of sustainably produced fuel, new aircraft designs, more efficiency, as well as binding carbon dioxide and offsetting emissions, said Walsh at the IATA annual conference in Boston. There was resistance from Chinese airlines to the objective, but this did not prevail. With the adoption at the annual meeting, the goal is now the official position of the IATA, said Walsh. But the individual airlines could take different paths and set their own goals, he emphasized. The debate shows how much this is a challenge. Passengers were increasingly interested in their carbon footprint as well as in legroom in the aircraft, said the head of the ICAO aviation organization, Salvatore Sciacchitano. That is why the industry has to act.