The airline industry's recovery will take a long time and the worst is not yet over, according to statements from British Airways-majority airline Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker, reports the Financial Times.
The Qatar Airways CEO's statements contrast with many other industry analysts who believe that the airline industry's recovery is imminent within the coming months.
Akbar Al Baker instead believes that hopes for a quick recovery are hasty and that the need for collaboration within the industry is urgent, according to the newspaper.
Last week, several American CEOs made hopeful predictions, while several of the European players who have seen slower vaccinations in the region compared to the United States have also said they at least see light at the end of the tunnel.
Vaccination is the key to the entire complex process in the market, says the Qatar Airways CEO, but it is not crystal clear whether the current vaccines will be able to completely unlock it.
The reason is that there is a lack of clarity about how long the vaccine provides immunity against Covid-19, and there is also the risk that increased travel will ”move” the infection faster. The UK could have its fourth, fifth or sixth wave of infection if international travel is opened too quickly, warned Akbar Al Baker. Therefore, broader collaboration is needed to create so-called vaccination passports.
”"Each country is currently developing its own app, with its own rules. In the long run, that won't work," he said.
Qatar Airways is part of the collaboration on the international aviation authority IATA's travel passport, but no international standard for the technology has yet been decided.
”The function of the travel pass is entirely dependent on the system in which it is implemented. If each country has different rules, then all countries will have different systems and different requirements which will confuse travelers and airlines,” he said.
Qatar Airways is state-owned and was saved by state funds during the pandemic crisis. However, the emirate and Akbar Al Baker have not only gained influence over Europe's aviation market through their majority ownership in British Airways owner IAG, but also as a major shareholder in Heathrow, where the CEO has been appointed to the board.
Source: Nyhetsbyrån Direkt
