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passengers queueing”, “reduce service to the minimum” and require passengers “remain seated”. Airlines should also “ensure


physical distancing, to the extent possible”, other than for families and members of the same household travelling together, and modify seat allocation “accordingly”. Passengers who fail to act as


requested should “be refused access to the airport terminal, refused boarding or disembarked”. Carriers should complete a


“passenger locator card” before landing to aid contact tracing and isolate any passenger showing symptoms of Covid-19. Easa discounts thermal


screening of travellers’ temperatures, already introduced at some airports and being trialled at Heathrow, as “not effective or efficient in detecting Covid-19”. It notes: “Many symptomatic


persons do not have fever; fever can be easily treated with medication; a large percentage of transmission occurs by asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic cases; and it [screening] may give a false impression of safety.” Easa also notes: “Face masks


in airports should be considered only as a complementary measure and not as a replacement for established preventive measures, for example physical distancing.” It recommends physical


distancing be maintained “wherever operationally feasible”, including on flights. The UK government has said


it will operate outside of Easa after leaving the EU in January 2021, meaning the UK is likely to confirm protocols of its own. However, these are expected to mimic Easa guidelines to avoid further disruption.


Ryanair records €1bn profit and eyes ‘opportunities’


Ryanair confirmed plans to resume up to 50% of flights in July as it reported an annual profit of just over €1 billion for the 12 months to March, up from €885 million the previous year despite the onset of the Covid-19 crisis. Chief executive Michael O’Leary said: “We expect to go to some


level of flying from July 1. We took considerable comfort over the weekend from the Italian plan to open from June 3. “Our bookings were up 60%


this weekend over the previous weekend, off a very small base. “Clearly there is going to be a


lot of short-term pain in the airline industry. [But] once people begin to move there will be aggressive price stimulation.” However, O’Leary said: “Over


the medium term we think this is a huge opportunity. We’ll have lower-cost fuel, airports, crew and


aircraft. Our payroll will be a lot smaller. We’re facing very significant job losses of pilots and cabin crew. “The growth opportunities will


be once in a lifetime.”


NCL posts $1.9bn loss but reports ‘pent-up demand’


Ian Taylor


Norwegian Cruise Line’s owner expects a slow return to business despite “pent-up demand”, with chief executive Frank Del Rio insisting the cruise sector’s return “will take some time”. The Norwegian Cruise Line


Holdings president and chief executive said: “We’re working with port operators and partners around the world on how to reopen. We expect sailings to start with a handful of ships phasing in over five to six months. Del Rio added: “It will take time


to ramp up. If the booking curve is eight months it will take at least that long, without taking account of the economic situation, to get back.” Speaking after Norwegian


announced a $1.9 billion loss for the first three months of the year, Del Rio insisted: “The number-one priority is regaining the confidence of the consumer. Nothing is more essential than providing our guests with peace


30 21 MAY 2020


of mind, providing consumers with absolute confidence in our ability to provide a safe environment.” He said: “We need a


comprehensive series of [safety] protocols. Once those are accepted, we have to market those protocols to give consumers confidence. This is not an exercise to get away with the least possible. This will take some time. We want it to be safe to go on a cruise ship. Until we can say that, we don’t want to operate.” Del Rio declined to give details of


the likely measures, saying: “It’s too early to talk about specifics.” He added: “I don’t think we’ll


be at full occupancy. We don’t know whether government agencies will require us to sail at under 100% [capacity] even if we could.” Del Rio rejected a suggestion


that customers may prefer cruises close to home, noting “the number- one itineraries” in demand for the first half of next year are Japan and Dubai. He said: “What we’re seeing


Frank Del Rio


defies this notion that people aren’t going to want to cruise to faraway destinations.” He insisted: “We’re still taking


bookings. We’ve taken a significant amount of new bookings in a period in which we had a horrific news flow and zero marketing. It demonstrates the resilience of this industry. “Demand is based on our ability to


market, on travel agencies being open, on the industry being back in operation after a four-month shutdown. There will be pent-up demand.”


travelweekly.co.uk


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