TUI claims resilience following Thomas Cook collapse
European travel group TUI has said that it had been assessing the impact of the collapse of rival Thomas Cook on its own operations.
Responding to the collapse, the travel group stated that: “Where TUI customers are booked on Thomas Cook Airlines flights and these are no longer operated, replacement flights will be offered.”
TUI was also considering offering replacement flights for customers booked on the failed operator’s airline.
The Anglo-German company said that it had been assessing the impact of monday’s events on its own operations.
In a trading update before the market closed this afternoon, TUI said its “own business model was proving to be resilient even in this challenging market environment”.
“Our holiday experiences business continues to deliver strong results,” it added.
The claims of resilience come as the company expected its full-year underlying core earnings to fall by as much as 26 per cent, compared with a rebased €1.2bn (£1bn) in its 2018 financial year.
TUI also stated that their markets and airlines business “faces a number of ongoing external challenges such as the grounding of the 737 Max aircraft, airline overcapacities and continued Brexit uncertainty”.
TUI’s fleet includes 15 Boeing 737 Max aircraft which were grounded following two fatal air accidents in October 2018 and March 2019. Brexit has also hit consumer confidence, forcing
travel companies to fight for bookings and decrease their prices.
The travel company said resumption of the 737 Max “remains subject to the clearance
decision of the civil aviation authorities”.
TUI understands that the concerns facing the travel market are chronic, writing that:
“These external challenges will continue in FY20 – therefore, we will focus on becoming more cost competitive in our markets and airlines business to protect and extend our market share where possible.”
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