Tourism: The recovery is postponed to 2023

Another difficult year for the tourism and aviation industry will be this year, as the anxiety for the evolution of the pandemic continues.

In recent months, especially after the summer, the number of bookings for 2023 has been steadily increasing. However, low cost airlines are preparing for fierce competition. Since the start of the pandemic in the spring of 2020, the DRV has estimated the industry’s financial losses at around € 24 billion.

According to the president of the association, Norbert Fiebig, tourism professionals have not yet given up their optimism and hold out hope for a summer that will approach pre-pandemic turnovers, however “the real and sustainable recovery is not expected before 2023”. Trying to adapt to the new reality, many tourism professionals offer special or exclusive packages “for vaccinated or recovering”. At the same time, they adjust the terms of the contracts so that consumers can cancel their trip or choose new dates even two weeks before their departure.

Tickets from … five euros?

At the same time, low-cost airlines such as Ryanair and Wizz Air are ordering hundreds of new aircraft, hoping to secure a dominant position early in the day after the pandemic. In the absence of demand, everything shows that they will proceed with aggressive moves, even offering tickets at symbolic prices of … five euros.

For Wizz Air President Joseph Varandi, the major area of ​​competition is transatlantic flights, which will include smaller Airbus A321XLR aircraft in the coming years that will fly for up to eleven hours without refueling. This innovation will allow airlines to depart from smaller airports, intensifying competition with giants such as Lufthansa, British Airways and Air France.

At this time the protagonists of the industry are trying to gradually return to normalcy, expanding the total capacity of flights from 60% to 80%, compared to pre-pandemic times. The opening of the American market for Europeans also helped them in this, while it remains unknown when the main destinations in Asia will reopen. A new aggressive “player” is Turkish Airlines, which operates its modern facilities at the new airport in Istanbul. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) is increasingly challenging the logic of the restrictions. “The danger does not come from aviation, but from social contacts,” said IATA chief Willy Walsh.

New “headache” climate change

Another – much more complex and difficult – parameter is the risk of climate change. “Flights, cruises and car trips cause increased emissions, which are responsible for the greenhouse effect.” This is the Achilles heel of tourism and we should focus on it, “says Norbert Fibig. Among other things, he suggests that consumers be informed in detail about the “ecological footprint” of the tourist package they will choose and about the possibilities they have to compensate for the emission of pollutants. For Andrzej Monshausen from the German NGO “Brot für die Welt” this is not enough. As she points out, “it is good to inform the public, but it would be even better to significantly reduce emissions.”

Especially in larger aircraft, for example in a 350 tonne Boeing 777X, technology has not yet provided a more environmentally friendly alternative. In shorter routes, Airbus is exploring the possibility of including hydrogen cell aircraft in its fleet by 2035. For its part, Boeing is investing in more environmentally friendly kerosene (SAF), which is mainly made from biomass. Lufthansa says it has bought a € 250 million SAF over the next three years, but that is only enough for 100 transatlantic flights. In addition, Andrzej Monshausen points out in a critical mood, “any pollution savings from the use of SAF are canceled and over-replenished by the continuous expansion of aviation …”

Frederick Marx, Christian Ebner (DPA)

Edited by: Giannis Papadimitriou

Source: Deutsche Welle