CORONAVIRUS: Latin America airlines ask government flexibility

The Latin American and Caribbean Air Transport Association (ALTA) said in a statement that the impact of the coronavirus is not yet evidenced in figures, except for some routes that to Europe and Asia.

However, estimates presented by IATA calculate that in 2020 global passenger traffic will be reduced between 11% and 19% and the passenger transport industry will have losses between $63 billion and $113 billion in revenue, still evaluating cargo transport losses.

“ALTA calls on the governments of the region to work even more closely to guarantee the viability of the industry and the maintenance of the economies in the medium and long term through exceptional and temporary measures that allow operation and mobility of the passengers ”.

The union asks the authorities to maintain fluid contact with the airlines in order to effectively inform and coordinate any entry control measure or health form required by the different States.

they request “to make more flexible the rules for the allocation of slots (time blocks) in airports as an exceptional measure to ensure that low demand or flight cancellations do not affect the historical compliance of the airlines necessary for the planning of the following flight season ”.

They also indicate that it is necessary to reduce costs in a general way to the industry to mitigate the affectation caused by this exceptional situation. “Among them, taxes and fees and charges throughout the airline production chain.”