The top European Commission official, Henrik Hololei, has said that international crises are making the final stage of European air travel’s recovery slower. During an Aircraft Leasing Ireland (ALI) conference in Ireland’s capital, Hololei stressed that European air travel recovered quicker than most predicted, reaching 90 per cent of pre-pandemic levels, as informed by a news report in Schengen Visa.
Hololei also added that China’s continued COVID-19 lockdowns were among the factors that slowed the final phase of recovery. “Once China opens up, that will make a big difference,” he pointed out.
EU director general for mobility and transport also added that rising energy and living costs could also hit air travel and make it more difficult to predict customers’ likely behaviour, stressing that a clearer picture could emerge in the following weeks. He told ALI’s Global Aviation Sustainability Day that the summer’s strong recovery revealed that “the bottom line is that people still wanted to fly”.
Despite the fact that the air travel industry is facing significant difficulties, it is marking notable recovery compared to the last two years when governments imposed strict travel rules in order to contain the further spread of the virus and its new variants.
However, previously a report published by Fortune revealed that not all travellers would be welcomed anymore, especially budget travellers. The report noted that neither airlines nor hotspots want their budget travellers back anymore. In this regard, previously, the CEO of Irish airline Ryanair, Michael O’Leary, said that there would be no more €10 (USD10.33) flights due to the current situation while stressing that the era of cheap travel is over.
“We think that €40 (approx. USD 39.70) needs to edge up towards maybe €50 (approx. USD 49.61) over the next five years. So, the £35 (approx. USD 40.34) average fare in the UK will rise to maybe £42 (approx. USD 48.42) or £43 (approx. USD 49.57) ,” he pointed out in this regard.
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