Warning over loss of aviation jobs in Wales

THE aviation industry in Wales could see 8,000 job losses from which it “may never recover to the levels we had”.

This dire warning comes from John Whalley, chief executive of Aerospace Wales, the trade association for all companies operating in the aerospace and defence sector in Wales.

Mr Whalley was giving evidence to the Welsh Affairs Committee on Tuesday where he painted a bleak picture for the future of the industry thanks to the coronavirus crisis.

“Aviation aerospace has had a pretty dire few weeks,” said Mr Whalley who has been heading up the federation since 2002.

“I mean aviation, the front end, has almost come to a complete standstill. You’ll still see a few aircraft going in and out of Cardiff, Heathrow and Manchester slightly busier, but not much.

“Cargo aircraft are still flying. And there’s a rush at the moment to try and convert passenger aircraft into the ability to carry more cargo. You may be aware that most cargo shipped around the world does actually go in passenger aircraft normally, so at the moment there is actually shorter capacity, which people are working to try and fill.”

When prompted by committee chairman Stephen Crabb MP, Mr Whalley said that some estimates put the recovery for the industry at three years, though he said this could be “a lot longer”.

“If we look at the industry, not just in Wales, but in the UK, people are talking about 30% cuts. If you think about, we had a 10-year backlog, aviation is going to be depressed now for a number of years. It’s going to take at least three years to recover, and possibly a lot longer, possibly a lot longer,” he said.

“We may never recover to the levels we had, there are all sorts of scenarios. So, 30% is my best guess if you factor that across Wales, 23,000 people, that’s probably 7,000 or 8,000 jobs are going to go that’s the stark bottom line.”

When asked about the support the industry has received he was particularly critical of the banks but praised the UK Government’s furlough scheme that was extended yesterday.

“Now the furloughing, and the financial aid has done a huge amount,” he said. “Some more successfully than others.

“The furloughing has been very good... the banks have not performed well, they just don’t seem to have the bandwidth to support the claims that are going in. The Development Bank of Wales has fared slightly better, but I think has effectively run out of cash.”