European lockdowns force EasyJet to scale back capacity even further November 6, 2020 EasyJet said this morning that the new lockdowns in England, Germany and France have forced the British airline to scale back its already reduced flying schedule, and it would now fly no more than 20% of capacity until at least the end of this year. The airline, whose finances are under pressure due to the [...]
We cannot stand by and let lockdown London become a ghost town November 6, 2020 A second lockdown is upon us, and many in the business community are understably frustrated. Some, in fact, have argued that we didn’t need to end up in this position at all. I believe that it is important we do all we can to adapt to the new restrictions and support the government and NHS [...]
TfL to start ferry service at Hammersmith Bridge November 5, 2020 The Department for Transport has announced a ferry service will begin at Hammersmith Bridge just days after it hammered out a new bailout with TfL. In a statement this evening the transport department said that, as part of the London bailout, TfL has been “required to procure a ferry service for passengers across the Thames [...]
Bombardier faces SFO probe over Indonesia contracts November 5, 2020 The Serious Fraud Office has confirmed it is investigating aircraft manufacturer Bombardier over suspected bribery and corruption relating to contracts and orders from Garuda Indonesia. It comes after an Indonesian court sentenced Garuda Indonesia’s former chief executive, Emirsyah Satar, to prison in May for bribery and money laundering offences linked to the procurement of planes [...]
British Airways suspends all flights from Gatwick due to second lockdown November 5, 2020 British Airways has reportedly scaled back its operations for November, including the suspension of all flights from Gatwick airport, due to the new lockdown in England. Already struggling with a hit to demand from the pandemic, the airline has also taken the decision to furlough more staff as it braces for a difficult winter. In [...]
Easyjet denies it is in talks with German authorities over state aid November 5, 2020 Easyjet has hit back at reports that it has approached German authorities for emergency funding to help it through the coronavirus pandemic. German business paper Wirtschaftswoche reported that chief exec Johan Lundgren had been involved in talks concerning a sum in the region of hundreds of millions of euros. But representatives for the low-cost carrier [...]
Wizz Air boss predicts carrier will make full recovery within a year November 5, 2020 Wizz Air’s chief executive has said that the airline will return to pre-pandemic service levels within a year. Speaking to City A.M., Jozsef Varadi that although it would likely take the aviation sector as a whole much longer to recover, he was incredibly upbeat about the Hungarian airline’s prospects. “It’s going to take five years for [...]
Car sales fall again in worst October in nine years November 5, 2020 Sales of new cars declined again last month in the weakest October in nine years for the UK car market. New figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said that sales dropped 1.6 per cent to 140,945. More than half of the decline came as a result of Wales’ two week “firebreak” [...]
Trainline posts £40m loss as passenger numbers evaporate November 5, 2020 Trainline this morning posted a £43m loss as the coronavirus pandemic hammered the number of passengers making rail journeys. In its first half results, the FTSE 250 firm said that sales fell 81 per cent to £358m in the period to the end of August, including the three month initial lockdown in the spring. Passenger [...]
Pilots’ union calls for ministers to commit to ending travel ban on 2 December November 4, 2020 The UK’s pilot union has called for the government to commit to end the ban on international leisure travel on 2 December. Under the rules of the new national lockdown, which begins tomorrow, all but essential overseas travel from England will be banned. When the measure was announced on Saturday it was denounced as a [...]