Corporate travel firms call for business air bridges to avoid quarantine June 10, 2020 The UK’s business travel sector has called on the government to create industry-specific air bridges to European business hubs in order to sidestep the current 14-day quarantine plan. In a letter to home secretary Priti Patel and transport secretary Grant Shapps, Clive Wratten, chief executive of the Business Travel Association, proposed three pilot travel corridors [...]
UK airlines set for jobs crisis on par with collapse of mining in 1980s June 10, 2020 The UK’s aviation sector is on the brink of a jobs crisis as severe as that which devastated the mining industry in the 1980s, a new report has found. According to the New Economics Foundation (NEF), up to 70,000 jobs are under threat as a result of the coronavirus crisis, which has grounded airlines around [...]
Honda forced to suspend factory activity in wake of cyber attack June 9, 2020 Honda has halted production at a number of its global factories after suffering a suspected cyber attack to its internal servers. A spokesperson for Honda said today that activity had been suspended as the company needed to ensure that its quality control systems were not compromised. Honda was hit by a suspected hack yesterday that [...]
TfL set to reopen its major construction projects June 9, 2020 Construction work is set to restart on major Transport for London (TfL) projects after months of inactivity. TfL announced today that it would organise a “phased restart” of its 300 sites that it shut down during the coronavirus lockdown. Key projects that will restart include the Bank station upgrade and the Northern Line extension. The [...]
Airlines face £84bn loss in ‘worst year in aviation history’ June 9, 2020 Global aviation body the International Air Transport Association (IATA) today said that the coronavirus crisis will see the world’s airlines make record losses of over £$100bn over 2020 and 2021. At a press conference this afternoon, director general Alexandre de Juniac said: “The losses this year will be the biggest in aviation history—over $84bn in [...]
Ferry service Thames Clippers to restart on 15 June June 9, 2020 River bus service Thames Clippers will return to service from 15 June as lockdown measures continue to ease and more commuters return to work. The company, which runs ferry journeys to 23 piers across London, will operate a bespoke timetable when it restarts services next week. Thames Clippers has made a number of changes to [...]
UK tourism group says air bridges will be set up by 29 June June 9, 2020 A tourism lobby group has said that air bridges to other countries will be operating by 29 June, saying it had received assurances on the matter by senior government officials. In a statement, Quash Quarantine, a 500-strong group of travel and hospitality firms, said that it was considering options including joining British Airways’ legal challenge [...]
French government presents €15bn aid package to save aviation sector June 9, 2020 The French government has this morning unveiled a €15bn (£13.3bn) plan to save its aerospace industry, saying that 100,000 jobs are at risk due to the coronavirus crisis. The rescue package, which includes pre-announced measures such as a €7bn loan to flag carrier Air France, comes amid the worst aviation downturn in history. New measures [...]
Hong Kong government to bail out struggling Cathay Pacific June 9, 2020 Hong Kong’s government will take an equity stake in embattled airline Cathay Pacific as part of a HK$39bn (£4bn) bailout of the struggling carrier. As a result of the coronavirus crisis, Cathay Pacific has said that its revenue had fallen to one per cent of previous years, adding that it has been burning through £250m [...]
Ride-hailing giant Gett chases $60m raise ahead of stock market debut June 8, 2020 Gett, the ride-hailing company part-owned by car giant Volkswagen, is close to raising a $60m (£47m) funding injection as it gears up to go public. The Uber rival is finalising the round which would be its first external fundraise since it secured $200m from investors last year. Sources told Sky News that the new funding [...]