Page 52 - World Airnews Magazine April 2021 Edition

NEWS

AIRLINES ARE CHANGING THEIR

FLIGHT DESTINATIONS

he said. clients. In fact, Ryanair, for instance,
“We need to adapt our operation more doesn’t have a loyalty card for frequent
Lufthansa said recently that it had towards seasonality to a larger extent than flyers.
registered a 75% drop in the number we do today,” he said. “This is likely to be a temporary
of passengers between 2019 and 2020 Budget airlines such as Ryanair and phenomenon. They are going to repivot
- highlighting the devastating impact easyJet have always lured costumers to corporate (travel),” Yanoshik from
experienced by many airlines since to take breaks in sunny European Berenberg also said.
COVID-19 hit. destinations, such as Greece, Spain and But with more airlines focusing on leisure
However, they are now studying ways Italy. However, more airlines could do travel in the short to medium-term, he said
to adjust business models as economies the same, such as Lufthansa and British ticket pricing “will be weak.”
attempt to re-open in the coming months. Airways, which have traditionally catered
“European carriers will pivot to leisure to those traveling for work purposes. VACCINE PASSPORTS
travel,” Adrian Yanoshik, an equity analyst “Corporate travel will be above European airlines are hoping that vaccine
at Berenberg, said recently. “This is a 2019 levels by the end of the decade,” passports will be used as a way to recover
tactical response. You follow the flow of Stephen Furlong, senior analyst at wealth some lost business this year.
people,” he said. management firm Davy said. He added that The idea of a vaccine passport is still
As European economies look at easing on the other hand leisure travel could snap being discussed by European politicians,
restrictions, it’s expected that people will back “very quickly.” but the travel industry sees it as a must
try to go on vacation as soon as possible, to allow some travel to return during this
after about a year of being stuck at home. A DIFFERENT CABIN MIX summer season.
In contrast, business travel is seen as taking Corporate travel has led airlines to develop “Within the industry, IATA is pushing
longer to recover. business class, premium seats and loyalty extremely hard” for this idea, said Andrew
“Am I going to do the one-day trip from cards. But as part of a new focus toward Lobbenberg, an equity analyst at HSBC.
London to New York for a three-hour leisure, analysts are expecting a different The International Air Transport
meeting? Probably not, so there will be plane layout. Association is actually working on a travel
some impact on business travel,” Keith “You’re going to get a cabin pass, a digital platform where passengers
Barr, CEO of IHG Hotels & Resorts, said. reconfiguration,” Furlong said, mentioning can upload their health information. It
Rickard Gustafson, CEO of Scandinavian how business class will be a much smaller has asked EU leaders to introduce vaccine
Airlines, is also expecting “some significant part of the airplane. “The size of the aircraft passports so customers can feel safe
shifts in the dynamics of the (airline) is (also) smaller,” he said. traveling again.
market.” Looking at how budget airlines have Vaccine passports “will end up being part
“I think we will see somewhat less traditionally organised their aircraft, there of the re-opening of air travel,” Lobbenberg
corporate travel and more leisure travel,” is clearly a much smaller focus on premium said. Q

World Airnews | April Extra 2021
— 5 —