Welcome to AW Daily. We’re launching this new feature on our website. Monday-Friday every week, we’ll post the latest news on the airline industry, data snapshots that catch our eye, and highlights from our latest and upcoming issues. Please drop me a line and let me know what you think and what types of content and stories you’d like to see: [email protected].
In the issue we published last night, we took a look at China’s uncertain recovery. Airlines in that country were hit hard when the pandemic began in Wuhan, costing them the lucrative Lunar New Year travel period. But China got the virus largely under control, despite flares in parts of the country. A few months ago, the conventional wisdom was that China’s airlines would bounce back.
But those green shoots are not as green as originally thought. First, although China’s economy will be one of the few major economies to show growth this year, that growth will be much slower than usual. Second, international travel has all but evaporated as countries around the region and the world enforce travel restrictions. And third, the domestic market hasn’t taken off as quickly as predicted.
Today, my colleague Brian Sumers, Skift senior aviation business editor, and I livestreamed on the state of the U.S. airline industry, what the fall might hold for airlines and their employees, and the end of the passenger Boeing 747 era. We’ll post a replay on the site, and the audio Airline Weekly Lounge podcast will be available on iTunes and Spotify and wherever else you get your podcasts later this week.
Welcome to our daily update. Once again, please send me your feedback and suggestions, [email protected].
— Madhu Unnikrishnan
Editor, Skift Airline Weekly
