Who’s ready to start a new airline in the U.S.? No, seriously. The history is pretty clear. There are few better ways to lose your money than launching a new airline. For that matter, investing in old airlines is a...
Read MoreFace masks. Blocked middle seats. Extensive aircraft cleaning and disinfection. Health screening before security. Flight attendants in protective gear. These are among the many ways in which airlines, airports, and governments around the world are grappling with a raging viral...
Read MoreVirgin America, Virgin Express, Virgin Sun, Virgin Nigeria, Virgin Samoa, Little Red… all gone. Same for Virgin Connect, the would-be name for Flybe, the first airline victim of the current virus crisis. Flybe’s part owner Virgin Atlantic, the very first...
Read MoreLike a sand castle washed away in the high tides, everything U.S. airlines built over the past 10 years is suddenly gone. Their muscular balance sheets. Their world-leading profit margins. Their resilient business models. Now, as they survey the ruins,...
Read MoreThis much is clear: The world’s airline industry is experiencing its greatest crisis ever. Nothing in the past comes even close. But as governments provide massive support to distressed economies, as entire societies mobilize to defeat the pandemic, and as...
Read MoreLast time, it was the banks. This time, it’s the airlines. Last week, America’s government assumed the role of an insurance company during times of catastrophe, enacting a $2t aid package to soften the impact of Covid-19. There’s money for...
Read MoreRemember when IATA, giving its worst-case scenario on March 5, said airlines could lose $113b in revenue from the Covid-19 pandemic? That now seems trivial compared to what they’ll actually lose. With things changing so fast, IATA didn’t issue a...
Read MoreThe Covid-19 virus crisis is now a full-blown pandemic affecting all corners of the earth, not to mention all airlines of the earth. In China, the worst might be over as the number of new cases reportedly decline. In Europe...
Read MoreIt was supposed to be a routine JPMorgan investor conference. U.S. airline executives would assemble in New York City, describing a world of strong demand, constrained supply, falling oil prices, and a healthy U.S. economy. Then along came Covid-19. On...
Read MoreA blessing in disguise? Throughout 2019, airlines struggled mightily with an aircraft shortage. Now, with worldwide traffic demand in freefall, not having all those additional aircraft might be a good thing. The Covid-19 demand shock of 2020, which started in...
Read MoreIs the world falling apart? It feels that way for airlines. Just a few short weeks ago, things were looking rather bright. As the new year began, prospects for travel demand appeared healthy in most parts of the world. Global...
Read MoreSome said it couldn’t last. It didn’t. By around 2015, Gulf carrier hyper-expansion was on the wane. No more voracious plane buying. No more hyperactive network expansion. No more billions spent on infrastructure. One of the global airline industry’s most...
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