NEWS


Summer is ‘write-off’ but 2021 ‘tremendous’


Lee Hayhurst trade support T


operators could worsen as summer approaches and there are more holidays to potentially rebook or more refunds being demanded. “I don’t know many operators who haven’t furloughed their on-the-road staff and other non-essential staff,” he said. “Most calls to operators now take hours. In the past, we would have asked the business development managers to get someone to contact us. It is particularly worrying where this will leave us when we get to July and August, with the sheer number of holidays.” Tracey Carter, director at Carrick Travel, which has


furloughed 39 of its 50 staff across its 11 branches, said: “Many of our [operator] contacts have been furloughed, although it is slightly easier now to get through to


operators on the phone [than it has been].” i ‘Furlough rules should be relaxed’: Agent Diary, page 17


T ravel Weekly has compiled a list of temporary


key contacts at tour operators during the crisis at: go.travelweekly.co.uk/keycontacts


his summer is “effectively a write-off” even if the government starts to allow international travel again before the peak travel period.


Will Waggott, former Thomas Cook, Tui and


Airtours boss, said he could not see borders being reopened before June or July. He said if flying resumed in time for this summer, the first few months would “be messy” as capacity was piled back on. “Realistically, next winter will be the next full


season,” he said in a Travel Weekly webcast. “People are going to be putting capacity on late


and selling it in a lates markets, so for the first three to six months it will be messy as we try to get back to a normal booking cycle. “People will travel again. There will be less


initially, and there are going to be customers concerned about this long-term. But it will bounce back and people will travel. “There are going to be fewer companies,


because not everybody will survive. Those that do, and have the resources to gear back up again, are going to do fairly well out of it.” While businesses have bookings for summer


2020, many are likely to have been secured on low deposits. And with consumers nervous about paying balances, most are expected to forfeit deposits in the hope of cheap deals in the lates market. Chris Photi, senior partner at White Hart


Associates, said for firms that survive “there is a tremendous outlook going into 2021 and beyond”. “All the benchmarking surveys say we want to


travel more and to have more holidays,” he said. However, he warned: “The economic fallout


from this could be as damaging as the short-term social and health fallout. That’s something that makes me nervous for the future.” Agents called for more airlines to extend the


typical 11-month booking window on flights so they could make bookings, and rebookings, for summer 2021. The move came top of a poll of ways to “kick-


start” the travel industry on trade Facebook group Travel Agent Rants and Raves. Administrator Jenny Jackson, owner of Luxury


Travel Guru, called for airlines to put flights on sale 18 months ahead. She said: “We all know 2020 is a virtual write-off but we need to rebuild now for 2021.”


Grounded: aircraft at Stansted


Saturday, April 4 O


O O O


FCO announces rescue flights for British tourists stranded across the world


FCO extends advice against overseas travel ‘indefinitely’; airlines urged to take April and May flights off sale


Airbus sharply reduces production of aircraft and rival Boeing launches a voluntary redundancy programme


Coral Princess allowed to dock in Miami after fears it was banned from US waters


Sunday, April 5 O


Australian police launch an investigation into the disembarkation of Ruby Princess, 11 of whose passengers have died of coronavirus


O O


FCO announces repatriation flights from India for this week


Ground handlers ask chancellor for 12-month business rates holiday as 95% of revenues collapse


Monday, April 6 O


Butlin’s, Haven and Warner Leisure Hotels, and Hurtigruten and Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line extend operations suspensions


O O


Wizz Air pauses all UK-Romania flights; BA suspends all Japan flights


EasyJet secures £600 million from the Treasury and Bank of England, boosting its cash reserves to £2.3 billion


Tuesday, april 7 O


Advantage cancels May 2020 conference


O O


Jet2holidays plans to resume flights on June 17


Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund buys 8% stake in Carnival Corp


O Iata warns 25m jobs at risk


travelweekly.co.uk


9 APRIL 2020


7


PICTURE: Shutterstock


PICTURE: Stansted Airport


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