How will the aviation industry be affected by the pandemic in the long term?
The head of Lufthansa expects fewer business trips than in pre-Corona times, but not quite as strong a slump.
Munich (dpa) - Lufthansa boss Carsten Spohr expects a less drastic slump in business trips after the pandemic than previously assumed.
“So far I had assumed a decrease of 10 to 20 percent. In the meantime I believe that the minus will reach more like 10 than 20 percent, ”said Spohr of the“ Süddeutsche Zeitung ”(Saturday). The group expects business travelers to come back very clearly from the third quarter, said Spohr. The longer the crisis lasts, the lower the proportion of trips that are completely replaced by video conferences. “People have had enough of video conference encounters. They want and have to see each other again in person, ”affirmed Spohr. According to him, some guests will also use the more expensive Business and Premium Economy classes privately because of the space and comfort offered.
After the deep red figures last year, government aid and job cuts, Lufthansa had also flown in a billion-dollar loss in the first quarter.
For the year as a whole, management expects the group to make fewer losses in day-to-day business than in 2020.
Most recently, Spohr had announced that he wanted to repay the government's billions in aid before the general election on September 26th.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210619-99-58155 / 2
