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LONDON, March 16 (Reuters) - A recovery in UK travel
bookings appears undimmed by the suspension of AstraZeneca's
COVID-19 vaccine elsewhere in Europe, airlines said on
Tuesday, as the setback threatens to delay immunisation
campaigns in affected countries.
France, Germany, Italy and 10 other EU states have paused
vaccinations with the AstraZeneca shot pending the investigation
of unusual cases of cerebral thrombosis in a small number of
people who had received it.
If sustained, the suspension could hamper efforts to bring
the pandemic under control and exit lockdowns, particularly in
countries such as France whose vaccination plans rely heavily on
supplies from AstraZeneca.
But a steady improvement underway in summer flight bookings
from the UK, which is ahead of the EU on vaccination and has not
suspended the AstraZeneca jab, so far shows little sign of
abating.
"There's been no dent whatsoever" in ticket sales, said a
spokesman for low-cost airline Jet2, which on Monday
announced additional flights to destinations including the
Canary Islands, Spain, Greece and Turkey.
"If anything the numbers that we saw to Turkey over the last
24 hours are strengthening."
Wizz Air, which is also betting on strong UK demand
for "sun-and-sea" Mediterranean destinations, said it was too
early to draw conclusions.
"Currently we do not see any fallout in bookings related to
the suspension (of) the AstraZeneca vaccine," a Wizz spokesman
said.
(Reporting by Sarah Young in London and Laurence Frost in
Paris. Editing by Mark Potter)
