Unpredictable Covid-19 rules could delay recovery, warn Airlines

On Tuesday, global airlines concluded their first meeting since COVID-19 knocked their sector to its knees, expressing confidence about pent-up demand but pleading with governments to streamline fragmented border procedures in order to avoid a relapse into recession.

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The International Air Transport Association (IATA), which represents 290 airlines, said the industry’s fragile recovery from the pandemic was being hampered by a misunderstanding about travel restrictions.

According to IATA, international travel will more than double next year compared to the pandemic’s low levels, reaching 44 percent of pre-crisis levels in 2019. Domestic travel, on the other hand, is expected to reach 93 percent of pre-pandemic levels.

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The trade organization, which comprises dozens of state-owned carriers, attributes the disparity to vast differences in entrance regulations and test procedures among the top 50 air travel markets.

“Frankly, governments haven’t made it easy for airlines or for the traveling public to understand what the rules are to fly,” said Joanna Geraghty, president of JetBlue.The Head of Dubai’s Emirates, who has been among the most upbeat executives about the possibilities for recovery if restrictions are lifted, said bookings in reopened markets like the United Kingdom and the United States have “gone up exponentially.”

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“That reflects a bow-wave of demand that we are seeing everywhere,” its president Tim Clark said. “The demand for air travel will restore itself… sooner rather than later.”

Even several airline and leasing business lenders attempting to attend the industry’s annual meeting in Boston were unable to fly or had to schedule additional time for quarantine.

Airlines have asked for an end to limitations on vaccinated travelers and for consistent health regulations at borders, despite the fact that global aviation cooperation moves at a deliberative pace.