The impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the aviation sector could wipe out as many as 46 million jobs around the world, according to new research by the Air Transport Action Group.
A Geneva-based aviation coalition, the Air Transport Action Group (ATAG) has published a report that shows that more than half of the 88 million direct and indirect jobs supported by the aviation industry could be lost thanks to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent downturn in global demand for air travel.
According to the report, of the 46 million jobs at risk, 4.8 million are coming directly from airlines, airport and civil aviation companies, amounting to a 43 per cent reduction in employment figures from before the pandemic.
A further 26 million jobs in the firing line are from air travel-related tourism industries, and around 15 million more are from companies that sell goods and services into the air transport supply chain, or aviation industry workers.
Moreover, the report specifies that economic activity supported by aviation could also shrink by up to 52 per cent, which translates to a loss of US$1.8 trillion in global GDP.
The report said the pandemic would have “far-reaching implications on the industry for many years”, both for the individuals and families affected by job losses, and overall economic conditions.
“There have been reductions in passenger traffic caused by shocks in the past, but never a near total shutdown of the global system,” the report said.
Michael Gill, executive director of the ATAG, said, “We know that a lot of jobs in air transport and the wider economy relying on aviation are at risk.”
The news comes as nearly 40,000 US airliner workers face imminent layoffs, as federal assistance dries up.
American Airlines and United combined account for 32,000 of these workers, and have announced that layoffs may be reduced in the event that Congress extends financial aid to the airline sector.
Meanwhile, global airlines have banded together to push governments to support pre-flight COVID-19 testing, in lieu of border closures and quarantine restrictions, in order to reinvigorate demand for international travel.
