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It is an incredibly sad time for the 100-year-old aviation industry:

  • Virgin fires more than 3,000 people, including 600 pilots.
  • Virgin Australia files for bankruptcy.
  • Air Mauritius goes into Administration.
  • South African Airways bankrupt.
  • Thai Airways bankrupt.
  • Finnair returns 12 planes and lays off 2,400 people.
  • YOU grounds 22 planes and fires 4,100 people.
  • Ryanair grounds 113 planes and gets rid of 900 pilots for the moment, 450 more in the coming months.
  • Norwegian completely stops its long-haul activity and its fleet of 787s is returned to the lessors.
  • SAS returns 14 planes and fires 520 pilots. The Scandinavian states are studying a plan to liquidate Norwegian and SAS to rebuild a new company from their ashes.
  • Etihad cancels 18 orders for A350s, grounds 10 A380s and 10 Boeing 787s. Lays off 720 staff.
  • Emirates grounds 38 A380s and cancels all orders for the Boeing 777x (150 aircraft, the largest order for this type). They “invite” all employees over 56 to retire.
  • Wizzair returns 32 A320s and lays off 1,200 people, including 200 pilots, another wave of 430 layoffs planned in the coming months. Remaining employees will see their wages reduced by 30%.
  • IAG (British Airways’ parent company) abandons the takeover of Air Europa (and will pay €40 million compensation for that).
  • IAG (Iberia) grounds 56 planes.
  • IAG (British Airways) grounds 34 planes.  Everyone over 58 to retire.
  • Luxair reduces its fleet by 50% (and associated redundancies).
  • CSA abolishes its long-haul sector and keeps only 5 medium-haul aircraft.
  • Eurowings goes into bankruptcy.
  • Brussels Airline reduces its fleet by 50% (and associated redundancies).
  • Lufthansa plans to ground 72 aircraft (in two installments).
  • HOP is studying the possibility of reducing fleet and staff by 50%.

Currently, 60 new aircraft stored at Airbus with no buyers in sight (order cancellations), including 18 A350s.

They forecast a minimum of 8,000 grounded planes by September. With an average of 5.8 crews per plane (medium and long haul combined), that would make more than 90,000 unemployed airline crew members worldwide.