Coronavirus: Carnival shares sink as cruise operator raises equity April 2, 2020 Cruise ship owner Carnival saw its shares sink over 8 per cent this morning after the firm said it had raised new equity at a higher cost than expected as the firm covers itself against the coronavirus disruption. Although its cruise ships are currently moored due to extensive restrictions on travel, the firm managed to [...]
Coronavirus: Saga seeks debt holiday and warns cruises could be suspended for six months April 2, 2020 Saga, the cruise operator and insurance provider for over-50’s, said this morning it plans to ask for a debt holiday as it warned that it could be forced to postpone holidays for up to six months. Saga’s share price dropped more than five per cent after it said full year revenue could be down around [...]
Coronavirus: British Airways to suspend 36,000 workers April 2, 2020 British Airways is preparing to suspend 36,000 employees after it was forced to ground flights due to coronavirus. The airline is close to reaching a deal with union Unite after negotiating for more than a week, however some details still need to be agreed upon, the BBC reported. Up to 80 per cent of the [...]
Coronavirus: Aerospace giants lobby for Virgin Atlantic rescue deal April 1, 2020 Several members of the UK aviation sector are lobbying the government to support Virgin Atlantic with financial aid through the coronavirus crisis, Sky News reported today. Aerospace giants Airbus and Rolls-Royce have written separately to transport secretary Grant Shapps, as has UK’s biggest airport Heathrow, asking the government to “do all it can to support [...]
Sadiq Khan: Still too many people catching public transport April 1, 2020 Sadiq Khan has hit out at Londoners who are not following the government’s social distancing rules, claiming there are still too many people using public transport. Khan told BBC Radio 4 today that some Tube carriages were still over crowded because “clearly too many people not staying at home”. The government has said that only [...]
Bank junction to be used as drone taxi landing zone April 1, 2020 Canada Corporation is preparing to designate the newly pedestrianised Bank junction as a drone taxi landing zone, City PM can reveal. Taxi drones could be zipping through the skies of the capital as soon as the summer after ministers backed a plan to prioritise new regulations allowing passenger transit on autonomous flying [...]
Coronavirus: UK airports renew calls for government aid as passenger numbers plummet March 31, 2020 The UK’s aviation sector has renewed calls for the government to do more to prop it up through the coronavirus pandemic, as new figures showed that UK passenger numbers could drop by a third in 2020. According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the UK is on course to see 113.5m fewer passengers pass [...]
Coronavirus: American Airlines to seek $12bn in state aid March 31, 2020 The US’ biggest carrier American Airlines will ask for $12bn (£9.7bn) in government aid in order to prevent it from making any pay cuts or laying off staff over the next six months. In a memo to employees last night, chief executive Doug Parker said that with the financial help American would be able to [...]
Coronavirus: Government poised to unveil rescue deal for bus industry March 31, 2020 Transport secretary Grant Shapps has said that a sector-specific deal for the UK’s bus operators will be announced shortly after passenger numbers collapsed nearly 80 per cent. Speaking to Sky, Shapps said that he was “working very hard on a package” for buses, having announced a set of emergency measures to protect the UK’s struggling [...]
British Airways suspends Gatwick flights over coronavirus March 31, 2020 British Airways has temporarily suspended flights from Gatwick Airport over the worldwide coronavirus crisis. BA has already warned it must slash jobs and ground planes to combat coronavirus travel bans, and today took the step of stopping Gatwick flights. “Due to the considerable restrictions and challenging market environment, like many other airlines, we will temporarily [...]
