Middle East airlines have lost an estimated $100 million so far due to the coronavirus outbreak and governments should help the carriers through this “difficult period”, an official of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said on Monday.
Ticket sales in the region for Middle Eastern airlines are expected to drop in coming weeks and revenues are at risk if travel restrictions in Asia are extended, IATA Vice President for Africa and the Middle East Muhammad Ali Albakri told reporters.
At this stage, global airlines stand to lose $1.5 billion this year due to the virus, he said.
Regional carriers will see their revenue dip by 3 percent, but this figure can go up to 50 percent if the outbreak continues and travel restrictions are expanded.
"We are seeing a drop in ticket sales in the Middle East and across the world. We are monitoring the situation and hope there is a reversal of the situation," he said, adding that the aviation industry was resilient and would bounce back from the situation, as it has done before.
"Airlines will have to reassess entire plans for 2020. This has impacted a major part of the world."
