Airlines

Aegean losses reveal impact of Covid-19 on aviation sector

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By breakingtravelnews.com

Aegean has seen revenue slump 88 per cent in the second quarter, highlighting the stark impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the aviation sector.

Consolidated revenue for the second quarter stood at just €40 million, down €307 million from the same period last year.

Pre-tax losses (excluding extraordinary losses) stood at €59 million, against a pre-tax profit of €32 million in the respective 2019 period.

The total number of flights operated by the Greek airline fell by 82 per cent in the quarter (with a reduction of 95 and 92 per cent for the months of April and May respectively), while passenger traffic fell 92 per cent.

As a result of the second quarter losses, overall first half 2020 consolidated revenue fell by 64 per cent to €187 million, while underlying pre-tax losses stood at €132 million.

Dimitris Gerogiannis, chief executive of Aegean, commented: “The last seven months have been a constant strife for flexibility, resilience and efforts to develop our viability forward in what is certainly the most difficult period the global airline industry has ever faced.

“Due to travel restrictions the second quarter of the year was a period with essentially zero activity.

“Our efforts were primarily directed towards cost management as well as establishing and implementing strict protocols for the safety of our passengers and crews.”

He added: “By end of June with the passing of the first wave of the pandemic and the partial lifting of travel restrictions, we made a significant effort to rebuild our activity, eventually covering 84 destinations from Athens and 52 from our regional bases, supporting Greek tourism.

“However, several markets, outside and within the EU remained inaccessible while demand for travel even from accessible countries was weak, despite Greece’s strong relative attractiveness and performance.”

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