Norwegian Air Shuttle (Oslo) is planning to reopen and expand its Stockholm (Arlanda) base for the summer season.
The airline is planning to reopen a crew base at ARN and is planning to operate 54 European routes this summer according to OAG.
Currently Norwegian is operating from ARN to 15 destinations, including three domestic destinations: Umeรฅ, Luleรฅ and Kiruna.
Smartwings landed its Boeing 737 MAX 8 in Antarctica.ย The landing at Troll Airfield at the northern tip of Antarctica took place on January 26, 2022, and 737 MAX is the first aircraft of its type here.
The flight was chartered by Aircontact to carry the members of the Norwegian Polar Institute to their base. The Troll Research Station is located 235 kilometers from the coast in the eastern part of Princess Martha Coast, in Queen Maud Land, Antarctica. Run by the Norwegian Polar Institute, the station is dedicated to environmental and climate monitoring, scientific research, and mapping. The runway is built on a glacier at an altitude of 1232 meters.
The flight beyond the Southern Arctic Circle went smoothly. Smartwingsโ Boeing 737 MAX (registration OK-SWB) took off from Oslo, Norway, heading for Cape Town, South Africa (with a stopover in NโDjamena, Chad). From Cape Town, the aircraft continued to Antarctica. The flight lasted 6 hours and the plane stayed in Antarctica for 2 hours, before setting off for Oslo via Cape Town again.
The crew of the Smartwings aircraft received continuous weather reports and updates on the airport operability during the flight via datalink and satellite phone communication. The 3,000m long runway covered with ice is used for landing and takeoff. The thick of the ice was measured and analyzed to withhold the operation. The surface was specifically prepared, and braking action measured by Norwegian Polar Institute prior to operation to allow takeoff and landing according to regulations and aircraft manufacturer standards keeping all the safety margins.
Landing on a glacier requires a specially trained crew which consisted of 3 experienced captains – Tomรกลก Nevole, Jan ล ลฅastnรฝ and Lubomรญr Malรญk.ย โIt is necessary to prepare thoroughly for such a flight. The preparations took many months, and the flight and landing went smoothly,โย says Smartwings captain and flight director Tomรกลก Nevole.
The captains had to undergo special training to become familiar with the area and the airstrip. All crew members undertook Arctic Survival training. The aircraft was equipped with Polar survival kits including polar clothes for the crew and in addition some critical spare parts were carried on board.
The weather was closely monitored 5 days prior the operation using the forecast of German meteorological institutes DWD and AWI with resources on Antarctica. For this type of operation, the companyโs air traffic control will assign at least one dispatcher who will constantly monitor and evaluate the condition of the airstrip and the weather, and will remain in touch with the crew in case of any changes. During the flight, the technical condition of the aircraft is being evaluated by the Smartwings technical department in Prague through an automated data link.
It is not possible to plan any alternate airport instead of Troll Airfield, which has all the necessary equipment, including but not limited to: adequate firefighting services, tailor- made approach charts and experienced staff responsible for Troll Airfield lead by Sven Lidstrรถm from the Norwegian Polar Institute. Due to the fact that it is a so-called isolated airport, where there are no other landing options within reach, it was necessary to obtain assessment and approval from the Czech Aviation Authority for Troll as Isolated Aerodrome.
Smartwings Group aircraft fly to more than 400 airports around the world per year. Until now Antarctica has been the only continent where Smartwings plane has not landed yet.
Video:
Smartwings aircraft slide show:
Smartwings aircraft photo gallery:
Air Leap (Stockholm-Arlanda) ceased all operations on January 24, 2022.
The airline issued this statement:
The board of Air Leap Aviation AB has decided to go into reconstruction and at the same time cancel all scheduled flights from and including January 24, 2022, it is stated in a press release from the company.
The main reason why we have made this decision is that it is not financially justifiable to continue with the material and the conditions we have today. The company has kept the operation going for the last two years during covid-19 with limited support from the public sector in Sweden. Air Leap has provided and maintained important infrastructure during the pandemic, which we believe should have been given more support when considering the extensive restrictions that our industry has experienced.
We apologize for the inconvenience this will cause for customers who have purchased tickets with the company after 24 January. All customers are asked to follow the company’s website for further information in the coming days.
History from Wikipedia:
Air Leap was founded by the same owners as the airlineย FlyViking. After FlyViking ceased operations in January 2018, the virtual airline Next Move was founded in March 2018 to continue operating theย รrlandย –ย Oslo Gardermoenย route. Next Move was renamed Air Leap after the company bought parts of the bankrupt Swedish airlineย Nextjet.
The parts of Nextjet became the Swedish Air Leap, but lacked an Air operator’s certificate (AOC) to operate the Swedish routes, which is why all flights in the beginning were operated by Denmark’s Danish Air Transport (DAT), the Estonian NyxAir and the Dutch AIS Airlines, among others. On June 11, 2018 flights were resumed in Sweden. On October 19, 2018, the Swedish Transport Agency awarded Air Leap Air Operator Certificate (AOC) and registered the company as the official operator of three SAAB 340Bs. The first flight under new AOC took place onย October 21, 2018 from Stockholm-Arlanda to Mariehamn.
On January 24, 2022, the company suspended operations and filed for reorganization, citing financial issues as a result of a lack of government aid from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Route Map:
Top Copyright Photo: Air Leap ATR 72-212A (ATR 72-500) SE-MDA (msn 778) ARN (Stefan Sjogren). Image: 951877.
Air Canada’s flight AC2201 on January 26 from Vancouverย toย Beijingย marks the first of three special charter flights transporting Team Canada to theย Beijingย 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. The airline also named its Team Air Canada athlete ambassadors and outlined its comprehensive program in support of Team Canada’s journey to excellence at the 2022 Winter Games.
“At Air Canada, we are proud to literally ‘Fly the Flag’ as we transport Team Canada to the 2022 Winter Games and honour their journey to the podium. We’re also delighted to endorse Olympians as Team Air Canada athlete ambassadors. Their resilience and relentless drive to be the very best in their sport, while embodyingย Canada’sย collective values of diversity, inclusivity, openness, and kindness inspire all of us. We look forward to sharing our athletes’ individual journeys and cheering on all members of Team Canada in their pursuit of excellence,” saidย Andy Shibata, Vice President, Brand at Air Canada.
“The pandemic has resulted in many unique logistical challenges in the lead up to theย Beijingย 2022 Olympic Winter Games and planning flights for approximately 230 Team Canada athletes has been one of them,” said Canadian Olympic Committee Chief Brand and Commercial Officerย Jacquie Ryan. “However, our amazing partner at Air Canada has provided incredible support behind the scenes to ensure a safe path for athletes including air charter services to and fromย Beijing. We have never been more proud to Fly The Flag on the official airline of Team Canada.”
“Flying to the host city is an important step of the journey for all athletes, coaches, and support staff as they prepare to representย Canadaย and be at their best for the Paralympic Games. A big thank you to Air Canada for all of their support in ensuring Team Canada is able to get to the Games safely and comfortably,” saidย Karen O’Neill, CEO, Canadian Paralympic Committee.
Airย Canada’sย charter flights operate with a 787 Dreamliner in a special livery. Flights fromย Vancouverย toย Beijingย take place today,ย Jan. 29, andย Feb. 25, and return toย Canadaย fromย Beijingย toย Vancouverย andย Torontoย onย Feb. 21ย and toย Vancouverย onย Mar. 14.
Team Air Canada Athlete Ambassadors
In addition to the employees and crews dedicated to transporting Team Canada safely to and from theย Beijingย 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, Air Canada is:
Airย Canadaย has been a proud sponsor of the Canadian Olympic Team since 1988 and of the Canadian Paralympic Team since 2007.
JetBlue Airways Corporation today reported its results for the fourth quarter of 2021:
Operational and Financial Highlights from the Fourth Quarter
Balance Sheet and Liquidity
Fuel Expense and Hedging
Northeast Alliance Expected to Deliver Competition and Customer Choice
Paving a Path Towards Value Creation
โWhile Omicron has temporarily weighed on demand in the very near-term, we expect sequential month-on-month improvement through the quarter, ultimately returning to sustained profitability in the spring and beyond. Furthermore, were it not for Omicron, we believe we would have generated higher revenue this quarter than in the first quarter of 2019,โ said Robin Hayes, JetBlueโs Chief Executive Officer.
โI firmly believe that 2022 will prove to be a transformational year for JetBlue’s structural profitability, as we look to restore our earnings power and create value for our stakeholders. And we plan to achieve this by pulling meaningful commercial levers, keeping our relentless focus on costs, and maintaining our measured approach to capital allocation.โ
Revenue and Capacity
โThe surge in case counts disproportionately impacted the Northeast, hittingย New Yorkย particularly hard, driving increased Customer cancellations and bookings softness during the most significant revenue weeks of the quarter, and also led to some Crew-related cancellations. Despite all of these challenges, our underlying revenue performance was very strong, which keeps us optimistic about the future as we continue to ramp up hiring efforts towards a fully staffed operation,โ said Joanna Geraghty, JetBlueโs President and Chief Operating Officer.
โFor the first quarter of 2022, we expect revenue to decrease between 11% and 16% year over three. This sequential slowdown reflects the large negative impact from Omicron on Q1 demand. However, trends have largely stabilized and are improving across all geographies. As quickly as the Omicron variant swept through the Northeast, we are seeing cases rapidly decline and we expect sequential month-on-month improvement leading to a profitable Q2 and a very strong summer peak.
For the first quarter of 2022, we expect capacity to range between (1%) and 2% year over three. For the full-year 2022, we are planning to grow capacity between 11% and 15% versus 2019 as we bring aircraft utilization back towards pre-pandemic levels, while retaining flexibility. We expect the demand recovery to regain steam following the temporary setback tied to the Omicron variant. Weโll continue to be nimble and react to the environment.โ
Financial Performance and Outlook
โWeโre confident that weโre on a path to sequential pre-tax margin improvement with sustained profitability in the spring and beyond. We expect to achieve greater operating leverage as we grow revenue while continuing to improve our unit cost performance,โ said Ursula Hurley, JetBlueโs Chief Financial Officer.
โFor the first quarter of 2022, we estimate CASM ex-fuel(2)ย will increase between 13% to 15% year over three. For the full-year 2022, we expect CASM ex-fuel(2)ย to increase in the range of 1% to 5% versus 2019. We expect elevated unit costs in the first half, followed by a meaningful improvement in the second half of the year as we plan for our network, operation, and aircraft utilization to settle into a โnew normalโ with optimal staffing levels, along with the ramp of our planned cost initiatives.
For the full-year, we have repaid a total of approximatelyย $1.9 billionย of debt. Our balance sheet continues to be among the strongest in the industry, and weโll continue our balanced approach to capital allocation to drive shareholder value.โ
Earnings Call Details
JetBlue will conduct a conference call to discuss its quarterly earnings today, January 27, 2022 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time. A live broadcast of the conference call will also be available via the internet atย http://investor.jetblue.com. The webcast replay and presentation materials will be archived on the companyโs website.
For further details see the Fourth Quarter 2021 Earnings Presentation available via the internet atย http://investor.jetblue.com.
About JetBlue
JetBlue isย New York’sย Hometown Airlineยฎ, and a leading carrier inย Boston,ย Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood,ย Los Angeles,ย Orlandoย and San Juan. JetBlue carries customers across theย U.S.,ย Caribbeanย andย Latin America, and betweenย New Yorkย andย London. For more information, visitย jetblue.com.
Notes
| (1) |
Non-GAAP financial measure; Note A provides a reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures used in this release and explains the reasons management believes that presentation of these non-GAAP financial measure provides useful information to investors regarding JetBlue’s financial condition and results of operations.
|
| (2) |
With respect to JetBlueโs CASM ex-fuel guidance, JetBlue is unable to provide a reconciliation of the non-GAAP financial measure to GAAP because the excluded items have not yet occurred and cannot be reasonably predicted. The reconciling information that is unavailable would include a forward-looking range of financial performance measures beyond our control, such as fuel costs, which are subject to many economic and political factors. Accordingly, a reconciliation to CASM is not available without unreasonable effort.
|
Wheels Up Experience Inc., the leading brand in private aviation, today announced it has reached an agreement to acquire Air Partner PLC, a U.K.-based global aviation services group with operations in 18 locations and across four continents. Under the terms of the transaction, Wheels Up will acquire the entire issued and to be issued ordinary share capital of Air Partner for 125 penceย per share, equivalent to an enterprise value of approximatelyย $107 million. The acquisition is expected to close later in the first quarter subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals.
Founded in 1961, Air Partner is a global aviation services company providing private jet, group and freight charter and aviation safety & security solutions to industry, commerce, governments and private individuals, across civil and military organizations.
Air Partner will provide Wheels Up the ability to expand its service offerings internationally, and Wheels Up expects Air Partner to leverage Wheels Up’s investments in operations, service and technology on a global basis with an active and engaged customer base. The proposed acquisition will enhance Wheels Up’s brand equity and will also add an experienced global team from a company with more than 60 years of continuous operations in private aviation.
Southwest Airlines today reported its fourth quarter and full year 2021 financial results:
Gary C. Kelly, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, stated, “We ended 2021 on a high note with our first quarterly profit, excluding special items, since fourth quarter 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic began. Leisure travel demand was strong, particularly during the holidays, and business revenues continued to recover compared with 2019 levels. We also generated incremental revenue from our new co-brand credit card agreement secured in December 2021 with Chase Bankย USA, N.A. Our fourth quarter 2021 cost performance was in line with expectations, which included hiring thousands of new Employees. While we continue to manage through an incredibly challenging operating environment, we made much progress in our recovery in 2021 and are well-positioned for future growth with our industry-leading balance sheet.
“We celebrated our 50th anniversary in 2021, opened 14 new airports, returned the Boeing 737 MAX (MAX) back into service, completed our launch of industry-standard corporate bookings through multiple Global Distribution System (GDS) platforms, and implemented a new maintenance record-keeping systemโto name just a few major accomplishments despite the pandemic. Our Employees’ resilience, teamwork, and care for Customers and one another has been a marvel to watch. Southwest was, once again, named to FORTUNE’s 2021 list of the World’s Most Admired Companiesโa testament to our Peopleโand I am pleased we were able to accrue $230 million of profit sharing in 2021 for their benefit.
“On February 1st, Bob Jordan will become the 6th CEO of Southwest. Since our announcement last June, Bob has been hard at work on the transition and is well-prepared to take on this important role. I have the utmost confidence in Bob, our Leadership Team, and the People of Southwest to lead the Company forward and execute a solid strategy. I am supremely honored and privileged to have served Southwest as CEO for 18 years, and I look forward to continuing to be a part of the Team as Executive Chairman.”
Bobย Jordan, Executive Vice President and Incoming Chief Executive Officer, stated, “Despite our fourth quarter profit, we had a challenging start to 2022 as we continue to recover from the pandemic. While we made significant progress in 2021, the Omicron variant has delayed the demand improvement we were previously expecting in early 2022. With COVID-19 cases trending downward, the worst appears to be behind us, and we are optimistic about current bookings and revenue trends for March 2022.
“We are experiencing higher unit cost inflation in 2022 as we continue to navigate the pandemic. The Omicron variant significantly impacted our available staffing beginning in early January 2022, and we temporarily extended incentive pay for Operations Employees through early February 2022, as we strive to maintain sufficient available staffing and minimize flight cancellations. Over the last two weeks we have returned to solid operational performance like we experienced over the holidays in fourth quarter 2021. We met our 2021 hiring goals, and we are planning to add at least 8,000 Employees this year. We are making additional investments to attract and retain talent, including our recent decision to further raise our starting hourly pay rates from $15 per hour to $17 per hour. We are currently in discussions with our workgroups to enact this increase in pay rates. Additionally, we are further moderating our first half 2022 capacity plans to provide additional buffer to the operation. Based on current plans, first quarter 2022 operating expenses per available seat mile (CASM, or unit costs), excluding fuel and oil expense, special items, and profit sharing, is expected to represent a peak, and our plans call for unit costs to ease from there into 2023.
“With the Omicron variant and weather impacting our results, we expect losses in January and February and a return to profitability in March 2022. Based on our current plan, while we no longer expect to be profitable in first quarter, we expect to be profitable for the remaining three quarters of this year, and for full year 2022. As demand for air travel recovers, we intend to substantially grow available seat miles (ASMs, or capacity) to restore the majority of our route network by the end of 2023. We remain laser focused on addressing staffing and cost challenges, and we are working urgently to return to historic productivity levels by the end of 2023, which, combined with planned ASM growth, we believe should enable a decrease in full year 2023 CASM, excluding fuel and oil expense, special items, and profit sharing, compared with full year 2022.
“Looking ahead, I am optimistic about our future. We have a solid strategy and intend to reinforce and build upon the core strengths of Southwest with several initiatives that we expect to create value and deliver significant financial benefits. In addition, we have made great progress in the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion, as well as environmental sustainability, and we remain steadfast in our focus on these important areas with tangible goals. We have the best Employees and Leadership Team in the industry. I add my thanks and appreciation to our People for persevering when times are difficult and for never giving up on each other or Southwest. I am honored to serve them, our Customers, and our Shareholders, and I appreciate the support ofย Garyย and the Board of Directors as I begin my new role as CEO.”
Notable 2021 announcements and accomplishments include:
Fleet and Capacity
The Company ended 2021 with 728 Boeing 737 aircraft, including 69 Boeing 737-8 (-8) aircraft. During 2021, the Company retired eight owned -700 aircraft, which were accelerated from 2022 into fourth quarter 2021, and returned 10 leased -700 aircraft, of which one occurred during fourth quarter 2021. In addition, the Company took delivery of 28 -8 aircraft during 2021. As of December 31, 2021, six -700 aircraft remained in temporary storage due to fourth quarter 2021 and first quarter 2022 capacity remaining below respective 2019 levels.
During fourth quarter 2021, the Company exercised 22 -7 options for delivery in 2023, and on January 1, 2022, the Company exercised another 12 Boeing optionsโfive -8 options for delivery in 2022 and seven -7 options for delivery in 2023. Including the options exercised on January 1, 2022, the Company’s order book with Boeing contains 406 MAX firm orders (271 -7 and 135 -8) and 226 MAX options (-7 or -8) for years 2022 through 2031. The Company continues to expect that more than half of the MAX aircraft in its firm order book will replace a significant amount of its 452 -700 aircraft over the next 10 to 15 years to support the modernization of its fleet, a key cost initiative and component of its environmental sustainability efforts. Additional information regarding the Company’s aircraft delivery schedule is included in the accompanying tables.
The Company’s fourth quarter 2021 capacity increased 54.4 percent, year-over-year, but decreased 8.3 percent compared with fourth quarter 2019. Full year 2021 capacity increased 27.6 percent, year-over-year, but decreased 16.1 percent compared with full year 2019. While the Company’s flight schedule is published for sale through September 5, 2022, the Company is in the process of adjusting its published flight schedules for March through May 2022 in light of recent staffing challenges due to the Omicron variant. The Company will continue to monitor staffing trends, along with booking and cancellation trends, and adjust capacity, as needed. As such, the Company’s actual flown capacity may differ from currently published flight schedules or current guidance.
Southwest Airlines aircraft photo gallery:
Alaska Air Group Inc. today announced another quarter of improvement in its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2021, and provided an outlook for the first quarter ending March 31, 2022.
“While recovery in our industry is never linear, our caring and dedicated people and the strength of our competitive advantages position us for success no matter what challenges we face,” said CEOย Ben Minicucci. “Despite operational disruption from omicron and severe winter weather in December, our fourth quarter adjusted pre-tax margin was 2.4%, marking one of the industry’s most profitable performances in Q4 and the second half of the year. We have laid a solid foundation for our return to 100% of our pre-COVID flying by summer 2022 and we’re poised to grow from there.”
Alaska’sย fourth quarter and full year 2021 results reflect a disciplined focus on cost management and a measured approach to bringing back capacity in recovery. In addition to delivering profitability in the second half of the year,ย Alaska’sย financial performance enabled the company to restore its debt-to-capitalization ratio to pre-pandemic levels in the fourth quarter, priming the airlines for profitable growth in 2022.
Financial Results for the Fourth Quarter and Full Year:
Balance Sheet and Liquidity at Year End:
Operational Updates and Milestones for the Fourth Quarter:
Fourth Quarter Environmental, Social, and Governance Updates:
The following table reconciles the company’s reported GAAP net income (loss) per share (EPS) for the three and twelve months endedย December 31, 2021ย and 2020 to adjusted amounts.
| Three Months Ended December 31, | |||||||
| 2021 | 2020 | ||||||
| (in millions, except per share amounts) | Dollars | Diluted EPS | Dollars | EPS | |||
| Reported GAAP net income (loss) and diluted EPS | $ ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย 18 | $ ย ย ย ย ย ย 0.14 | $ ย ย ย ย ย ย (447) | $ ย ย ย ย ย ย (3.60) | |||
| Payroll support program wage offset | โ | โ | (22) | (0.18) | |||
| Mark-to-market fuel hedge adjustments | 21 | 0.16 | (8) | (0.06) | |||
| Special items – impairment charges and other | (6) | (0.05) | 277 | 2.23 | |||
| Special items – restructuring charges | 2 | 0.02 | (102) | (0.82) | |||
| Special items – merger-related costs | โ | โ | 1 | 0.01 | |||
| Special items – net non-operating | โ | โ | 26 | 0.21 | |||
| Income tax effect on special items and fuel hedge adjustments | (4) | (0.03) | (41) | (0.33) | |||
| Non-GAAP adjusted net income (loss) and diluted EPS | $ ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย 31 | $ ย ย ย ย ย ย 0.24 | $ ย ย ย ย ย ย (316) | $ ย ย ย ย ย ย (2.54) | |||
| Twelve Months Ended December 31, | |||||||
| 2021 | 2020 | ||||||
| (in millions, except per share amounts) | Dollars | Diluted EPS | Dollars | EPS | |||
| Reported GAAP net income (loss) and diluted EPS | $ ย ย ย ย ย ย ย 478 | $ ย ย ย ย ย ย 3.77 | $ ย ย ย ย ย (1,324) | $ ย ย ย ย ย (10.72) | |||
| Payroll support program wage offset | (914) | (7.21) | (782) | (6.33) | |||
| Mark-to-market fuel hedge adjustments | (47) | (0.37) | (8) | (0.06) | |||
| Special items – impairment charges and other | (1) | (0.01) | 627 | 5.08 | |||
| Special items – restructuring charges | (10) | (0.08) | 220 | 1.78 | |||
| Special items – merger-related costs | โ | โ | 6 | 0.05 | |||
| Special items – net non-operating | โ | โ | 26 | 0.21 | |||
| Income tax effect on special items and fuel hedge adjustments | 238 | 1.87 | (21) | (0.18) | |||
| Non-GAAP adjusted net loss and diluted EPS | $ ย ย ย ย ย ย (256) | $ ย ย ย ย ย ย (2.03) | $ ย ย ย ย ย (1,256) | $ ย ย ย ย ย (10.17) | |||
Statistical data, as well as a reconciliation of the reported non-GAAP financial measures, can be found in the accompanying tables. A glossary of financial terms can be found on the last page of this release.
Icelandair has announced a further expansion of its codeshare with JetBlue Airways to offer customers more ways to book and connect their travel between the two airline’s networks across Europe and North America.
JetBlue’s current codes on Icelandair offer customers direct flights between New York, Newark and Boston and Iceland. In November 2021, the codeshare was expanded onwards to Amsterdam, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Helsinki, Oslo, Glasgow and Manchester. Now, the two companies have added the following destinations:
This expanded codeshare agreement builds upon JetBlue and Icelandair’s partnership that first began in 2011. Icelandair passengers already benefit from access to JetBlue’s network that spans 100+ destinations in more than two dozen countries. The further strengthening of the partnership will allow JetBlue customers to enjoy additional travel options via Iceland to a number of Icelandair’s destinations in Europe.
Customers traveling on connecting flights between Icelandair and JetBlue will enjoy both combined ticketing and baggage transfers. Additionally, when customers fly Icelandair across the Atlantic, they can stop over in Iceland at no additional cost, selecting a stopover duration of one to seven days to pack more experiences into their travel.
JetBlue and Icelandair customers enjoy benefits across loyalty programs. Since 2017, customers have had the opportunity to accrue loyalty points from both JetBlue’s TrueBlue program and Icelandair’s Saga Club, and soon will have the ability to redeem points on either carriers’ flights.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) urged governments to accelerate relaxation of travel restrictions as COVID-19 continues to evolve from the pandemic to endemic stage. IATA called for removing all travel barriers (including quarantine and testing) for those fully vaccinated with a WHO-approved vaccine, enabling quarantine-free travel for non-vaccinated travelers with a negative pre-departure antigen test result, removing travel bans, and accelerating the easing of travel restrictions in recognition that travelers pose no greater risk for COVID-19 spread than already exists in the general population.
โWith the experience of the Omicron variant, there is mounting scientific evidence and opinion opposing the targeting of travelers with restrictions and country bans to control the spread of COVID-19. The measures have not worked. Today Omicron is present in all parts of the world. Thatโs why travel, with very few exceptions, does not increase the risk to general populations. The billions spent testing travelers would be far more effective if allocated to vaccine distribution or strengthening health care systems,โ said Willie Walsh, IATAโs Director General.
A recently published study by Oxera and Edge Healthย (1)ย demonstrated the extremely limited impact of travel restrictions on controlling the spread of Omicron. The study found that:
โWhile the study is specific to the UK, it is clear that travel restrictions in any part of the world have had little impact on the spread of COVID-19, including the Omicron variant. The UK, France and Switzerland have recognized this and are among the first to begin removing travel measures. More governments need to follow their lead. Accelerating the removal of travel restrictions will be a major step towards living with the virus,โ said Walsh.
With respect to travel bans, last week, the WHO Emergency Committee confirmed theirย recommendationย to โLift or ease international traffic bans as they do not provide added value and continue to contribute to the economic and social stress experienced by States. The failure of travel restrictions introduced after the detection and reporting of Omicron variant to limit international spread of Omicron demonstrates the ineffectiveness of such measures over time.โ
All indications point to COVID-19 becoming an endemic conditionโone that humankind now has the tools (including vaccination and therapeutics) to live and travel with, bolstered by growing population immunity.
This aligns with the advice from public health experts to shift the policy focus from an individualโs health status towards policies focusing on population-wide protection. It is important that governments and the travel industry are well-prepared for the transition and ready to remove the burden of measures that disrupt travel.
โThe current situation of travel restrictions is a mess. There is one problemโCOVID-19. But there seem to be more unique solutions to managing travel and COVID-19 than there are countries to travel to. Indeed research from theย Migration Policy Instituteย has counted more than 100,000 travel measures around the world that create complexity for passengers, airlines and governments to manage. We have two years of experience to guide us on a simplified and coordinated path to normal travel when COVID-19 is endemic. That normality must recognize that travelers, with very few exceptions, will present no greater risk than exists in the general population. And thatโs why travelers should not be subject to any greater restrictions than are applied to the general community,โ said Walsh.
Mutually recognized policies on vaccination will be critical as we approach the endemic phase. Barrier-free travel is a potent incentive for vaccination. The sustainability of this incentive must not be compromised by vaccine policies that complicate travel or divert vaccine resources from where they can do the most good. Issues to address include:
โUrgent consideration is needed for several critical concerns regarding vaccines. While Europe is aligning around a nine-month validity period for primary vaccinations, this is not universal. And booster shot validity has not been addressed. As the first quarter of the year is key to bookings for the peak-northern summer travel season, it is important to provide certainty to potential travelers as early as possible. Governments have declared intentions to support a travel recovery. Addressing questions on vaccination validity is a key element,โ said Walsh.
In October, theย Ministerial Declarationย of the ICAO High-level Conference on COVID-19 called for โone vision for aviation recovery.โ IATA followed-up by publishingย From Restart to Recoveryย in November. It is a blueprint for reconnecting the world following key principles of simplicity, predictability and practicality.
โThe over-reaction of many governments to Omicron proved the blueprintโs key pointโthe need for simple, predictable and practical means of living with the virus that donโt constantly default to de-connecting the world. We have seen that targeting disproportionate measures at travelers has economic and social costs but very limited public health benefits. We must aim at a future where international travel faces no greater restriction than visiting a shop, attending a public gathering or riding the bus,โ said Walsh.
The successful rollout of theย IATA Travel Passย continues with a growing number of airlines already using it in daily operations to support the validation of health credentials for travel.
โWhatever the rules are for vaccination requirements, the industry will be able to manage them with digital solutions, the leader of which is the IATA Travel Pass. Itโs a matured solution being implemented across a growing number of global networks,โ said Walsh.
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