(Adds industry background)
LONDON, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Global airline industry body IATA
warned that the outlook for airlines had weakened since its
December forecasts, and due to tightening travel restrictions it
now expected the sector to still be bleeding cash by the fourth
quarter of this year.
IATA raised its forecast for total airline cash burn for
2021 to between $75 billion and $95 billion, up from the $48
billion it had forecast in December.
While many countries have started rolling out vaccines to
tackle the novel coronavirus, the emergence of more infectious
variants in countries such as Britain, Brazil and South Africa
has forced many governments to ban all but essential travel.
This summer is make-or-break for many airlines and holiday
companies which are struggling to survive with close to a year
of almost no revenue due to pandemic restrictions. Without it
many will need extra funds after burning through cash reserves.
Britain's Heathrow Airport said on Wednesday it had plunged
to a 2 billion pound loss in 2020 and that digital health checks
were now vital to building any kind of recovery in international
travel.
IATA also said on Wednesday it planned to launch a COVID-19
travel pass at the end of March, bringing into use a digital
system for test results and vaccine certificates which will help
facilitate travel.
(Reporting by Sarah Young; Editing by Kate Holton and James
Davey)
International Airlines (IAG)
