Emirates Group Feel Coronavirus Impact as Revenue Falls
UAE’s aviation industry’s key player, Emirates, in its 2019-20 Annual Report on May 10, reported a significant hike in profits for 32nd consecutive year. However, the airline has not been able to avoid the impact of the coronavirus. Sources claim that the runway closures in the first quarter and the consequent halt of operations has led to a significant revenue plunge.
Considering the reducing passenger numbers in the last financial year, Emirates Group believes that it doesn’t see travel demand returning to “normality” before 18 months.
Just like other members of the UAE Aviation Industry, Emirates Group is also actively engaged in making preparations to resume operations soon. In a recently released statement, Chairman of Emirates -Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed al-Maktoum said, “We are actively engaging with regulators and relevant stakeholders as they work to define standards to ensure the health and safety of travellers and operators in a post-pandemic world.”
As per sources, the flight operator has also reported a “fuel hedge ineffectiveness”. Due to the major fall in oil prices, the company’s fuel bill has also been severely hit. Emirates Group stated that in comparison to a 22 percent increase in the previous financial year, the average price of jet fuel dropped by 9 percent this year.
Despite being the world’s largest operator of wide-body jets, Emirates Group has been forced to cut executive pay and reduce basic salaries of most of its staff due to the coronavirus. Speaking about the seriousness of the situation, President of Emirates Group- Tim Clark said that this is a “black swan” for the airline industry.
Although hit by the pandemic, the UAE aviation industry seems to be ready to make a comeback as Emirates Group, Qatar Airways and Etihad Airways are planning to resume regular flights from June. It remains to be seen if the efforts to revive operations prove fruitful in the long run or worsen the number of coronavirus cases in the Middle East.
