Last week, a taskforce for the recovery of Ireland’s aviation sector – which has several notable members from the industry including Sean Doyle, CEO of Aer Lingus, Aengus Kelly, CEO of AerCap and David Swan, Chairman of Aircraft Leasing Ireland – released a final report submitted to the Irish government which calls for a number of actions to restart aviation services in the country. The report notes that Ireland controls over 60% of the entire global leasing market for aircraft, and has a significant international position in maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO). To maintain Ireland’s lead in this sector, aviation “urgently needs clarity, transparency and commitment from Government to rebuild”, says the report.
The taskforce has made twelve recommendations categorised into three main sections that deal with 1) protecting public health and rebuilding consumer confidence; 2) rebuilding regional and international connectivity; and 3) saving jobs and supporting Irish business.
The taskforce calls for a free testing, track and trace scheme, to help rebuild confidence in travelling, and for the country to adopt a National Code of Practice for Safe Air Travel in alignment with the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and European Centre for Disease Control (ECDC) protocol. The current waiver for 80:20 slot use-it or lose-it should be extended to cover the 2020/2021 winter season, says the report, which also calls on the Government to provide a rebate directly to the airlines of all Dublin Airport charges and air navigation charges, as well as provide a stimulus package for each of Cork, Shannon, Ireland West, Kerry and Donegal airports to encourage the rebuilding of traffic. The reports states that the Government should enhance investment in the aviation sector in response to Covid-19, and also in particular for the costs to support transition to carbon neutral operations.
On the financing side, because the aviation sector supports upwards of 140,000 jobs in the Irish economy, almost 40,000 of which are direct employment by the sector, the report states that wage and income supports already available “should remain in place for as long as necessary, but at the very least throughout the winter months and into the first six months of 2021”. The taskforce also calls for a liquidity initiative for the aviation sector that should include guarantees, credit lines and underpins for interest rates. “In the short term, applications should be supported across the industry which assists the cost of social distancing and pandemic management, including public confidence levels. In the medium term, a Pandemic Recovery Initiative should help address sustainable developments in operations and physical infrastructure.”
Access the full report here.