Easyjet latest airline to ground fleet as Loganair calls for help
Easyjet has become the latest airline to ground all of its flights due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The airline, which follows in the footsteps of rival Ryanair – which last week grounded flights until June – said parking all 344 of its planes “removes significant cost” as the aviation industry struggles to cope with a collapse in demand.
The move comes as Scottish regional airline Loganair said it expects to ask the government for a bailout to cope with the impact of the pandemic.
Customers called for answers as it was not immediately clear if they would be offered refunds for booked flights – while those stranded overseas were uncertain how they would return home.
Meanwhile, just a small proportion of usual flights are still arriving and taking off from Scotland’s major airports.
In Edinburgh, only a couple of flights to major London hub Heathrow are still running daily, as well as a route between the Scottish capital and Doha in Qatar and one to Dublin. A spokeswoman for the airport said the arrivals and departures at Scotland’s busiest airport totalled around 25 yesterday.
Glasgow take-offs and landings were equally sparse, with just a few flights to Scottish islands, including Tiree and Barra, running, as well as a route to Amsterdam and another to Heathrow making up the eight arrivals and departures. Most are repatriation flights, connecting with major hubs to bring home Britons stranded abroad.
In Aberdeen, helicopters serving the oil and gas industry are operating as normal, although the airport said only ten to 20 scheduled flights are landing and departing daily.
Easyjet insisted it “maintains a strong balance sheet” and revealed it is in “ongoing discussions with liquidity providers”. It said it had agreed with the Unite the union to furlough its cabin crew for two months, with 80 per cent of wages for affected workers due to be paid through the government job retention scheme.
Easyjetchiefexecutivejohan Lundgren said: “I am extremely proud of the way in which people across Easyjet have given their absolute best at such a challenging time, including so many crew who have volunteered to operate rescue flights to bring our customers home.”
Rory Boland, editor of Which? Travel, said: “With Easyjet grounding its entire fleet, many people may face being stranded abroad, so the airline should urgently set out how it will return passengers to the UK, including the possibility of rescue flights or flights with other operators.
“Many Easyjet customers say they are struggling to get clear information about their rights to a refund for cancelled flights. While some may be happy rebooking their holiday for a later date or accepting a voucher, the airline is legally obliged to offer refunds to customers whose flights have been cancelled.”
He added: “The government must consider all options to support the airline industry, so consumers aren’t left without money they need at this time.”
Loganair chief executive Jonathan Hinkles said the
Covid-19 pandemic has “had an enormous effect on all UK airlines”. He went on: “The government has made it clear that it is open to requests for support from individual airlines and, whilst Loganair has not yet taken up this invite, we fully expect to join other UK airlines in doing so in the coming days.”
Mr Hinkles later said that the key issue is “about actually getting rid of payments” rather than deferring costs.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak told the aviation industry last week that he will not create a specific support package, but the government is prepared to enter into negotiations with individual firms once they had “exhausted other options” such as raising cash from existing investors.