'You'll never see a 747 flying again': Coronavirus 'is killing off big long-haul planes...

....with airlines switching to fewer, smaller aircraft', says expert

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...-aircraft.html

*Lufthansa announced retirement of half of its A380 and 747 long-haul aircraft

*Coronavirus is said to have hastened demise of world's largest passenger jets

*Andrew Charlton says the pandemic could mark the end of Boeing 747 planes

*EasyJet said it would leave middle seats on planes empty for social distancing

The coronavirus pandemic could kill off large long-haul planes as the airline
industry continues to be crippled by the worldwide lockdown, an expert warned
today.

Airlines are expected to switch to flying fewer, smaller aircraft – with the
infection said to have accelerated the demise of the world's largest passenger
planes.

These are the relatively new Airbus A380 and the Boeing 747-400, the original
jumbo jet - with Lufthansa already scrapping half of its versions of both
models.

Aviation consultant Andrew Charlton told the Guardian: 'You will never see a 747
flying again, and the only A380s will have Emirates painted on the side.'

The German carrier expects it will take several months for travel restrictions
to be completely lifted and years until the global demand returns to pre-crisis
levels.

Airbus A380 planes cost £350million each, and there are 110 in service.
Meanwhile the Boeing 747 comes in at about £190million per plane, with 356 in
service.

Both the A380 and 737 were among the first to be grounded this year as demand
fell, with business class seats left empty as firms turned to video-conferencing
tools.

Airlines have grounded their planes and furloughed thousands of workers as
countries close their borders and resorts shut down for an indefinite period.

Many are predicting short-haul carriers could soon offer rock-bottom prices to
start generating revenues and force down competitors' prices across the
industry.

EasyJet has said it expects to leave middle seats on planes empty as a
short-term measure to enforce social distancing and gives customers more
confidence.

Its chief executive Johan Lundgren said: 'We will clearly look to have the
middle seat empty as we start. I think that is actually what the customers would
like to see.'

But he said travel restrictions are likely to ease slowly and easyJet must be
flexible, adding: 'I don't think this is going to be a case of let's just open
everything up.'

The head of Ryanair, Europe's largest low-cost airline, has brushed off
forecasts of a sluggish recovery, saying he expected a swift traffic rebound
fuelled by 'massive price-dumping' in a race to win back passengers.

Low cost airlines have been criticised for their 'tin-eared response' to the
crisis by offering vouchers rather than refunds to customers on cancelled
flights, in a desperate attempt to save cash.

Mr Charlton said: 'Yes, passengers will travel by banking their vouchers … But
people being burnt by that now aren't going to book ahead in future – it's
collapsing confidence in booking.'

Larger airlines have also announced measures to build confidence in customers
fearful of infection from cramped cabin space, with Emirates trialling a rapid
blood test, where the results are available in 10 minutes, on all passengers on
one flight from Dubai to Tunisia this week.

Global traffic is now down 80 per cent year-on-year, quashing recent forecasts
that the number of airline passengers would double within 20 years.

The International Air Transport Association has said passenger revenues will
plunge by about £250billion or 55 per cent in 2020 due to the pandemic.

Alexandre de Juniac, director general of the Canada-based organisation, added:
'We are not expecting to restart the same industry that we closed a few weeks
ago.'

In late March, the IATA, which represents 290 carriers, forecast that half of
the world's airlines would run out of cash within two to three months.

It urged governments to support airlines either by nationalising them or
injecting fresh capital, waiving or delaying charges including taxes, or
providing loan guarantees.

EasyJet said it could survive a nine-month shutdown thanks to its measures to
contend with the coronavirus crisis and is planning for a slow recovery.

The company will start to shrink its fleet and the number of planes it operates
will not reach pre-crisis levels until 2022, signalling that it does not expect
a quick recovery for the industry.

'We've been able to adapt ourselves to reduced demand for the next couple of
years, then have the flexibility to increase as demand picks up again,' said Mr
Lundgren.



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