Emirates has said it doesn’t see travel demand waning anytime soon, even as the industry grapples with a string of challenges that have already hit Hawaii ahead of the hectic summer holiday season. Have given rise to the chaos of the base.
Tim Clark, president of the Dubai-based carrier and an airline veteran, said he had “never seen anything” as the industry is currently facing. Still, holidaymakers are not shying away from seizing the travel opportunities of the newly reintroduced.
Clarke told CNBC’s Dan Murphy at the International Air Transport Association’s 78th Annual General Meeting in Doha, “It is unlikely that, despite the constraint – whether it is price, whether it is airport facilities – this demand will continue to grow in the short term. will end.” , Queue.
The airline industry has been hit by a perfect storm of challenges, from labor shortages and supply disruptions to rising fuel prices, resulting in weeks of severe delays and cancellations at some of the busiest airports in Europe and North America.
As of Saturday, more than 6,300 flights were delayed in or out of the US, and 859 flights were cancelled, According to flight tracking platform FlightAware, Similarly, thousands of flights have been disrupted across Europe in recent days, including 5,000 passengers Cancellations are expected at London’s Heathrow Airport on Monday alone.
The airline industry has been hit by a perfect storm of challenges in recent weeks, from labor shortages and supply disruptions to rising fuel prices.
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However, Clark said travelers are currently willing to pay the price – financial and otherwise – for travel after the pandemic.
“The airline community has had to raise their prices to cover and mitigate the increase in fuel prices, which has been astronomical. But demand remains resilient, and we don’t see any downside,” he said.
Clarke said that no one has any idea how long this could last. Mounting inflationary pressures and the worsening cost of living crisis, as well as wider socio-political concerns as a result of the war in Ukraine, all pose further downsides for the industry, he said.
“Will demand taper or thin over the next years as these key economic factors – which are very unfavorable for our business and the global economy – will remain the same? Or will they go down first? I don’t know which one it’s going to be ,” They said.
Clark urged greater industry collaboration and coordination through the summer travel summit, noting that “we just have to nudge through it and focus on getting the job done rather than killing each other.”
Still, he said he expects the emirate to be hit by billions of dollars in damages over two years, including a . also includes $1.1 billion deficit in 2021It is expected to return to profitability in 2022.
“At the moment I’m happy to say we’re making money,” Clark said. “Unless something more extraordinary happens, I think Emirates will be profitable this fiscal year.”
