Tag Archives: corona virus crisis

LATAM, Latin America’s biggest airline group, files for bankruptcy

latam airlines

LATAM Airlines Group, Latin America’s largest air carrier, has sought bankruptcy court protection in New York after the Covid-19 pandemic grounded flights across the region. The Chapter 11 petition allows LATAM to keep operating while the Chilean carrier works out a plan to pay creditors and turn around the business. LATAM, whose shareholders include Chile’s […]

Seychelles international airport to reopen on June 1

seychelles hilton resort

Seychelles, the small island holiday destination in the Indian Ocean with a population of less than a hundred thousand inhabitants, is now Covid-19 and ready to welcome guests. The country, which reported a number of 11 cases in total, has announced the last infected patient tested negative for a continuous number of days and is […]

Dubai all set to allow free movement, business operations from Wednesday

Dubai

Dubai will begin allowing free movement and business activity to restart from tomorrow. There will be no restrictions on movement or business operations between 6 am and 11 pm, the Dubai media office said in a press release. Some retail and wholesale businesses will be allowed to reopen, subject to further sterilisation operations and social […]

THAI Airways no longer a state enterprise, as govt sells stake

thai airways

The Thailand government has sold a 3.2% stake in national carrier THAI Airways. The government’s stake now stands at 47.86%, ending the airline’s days as a majority-owned state enterprise. A total of 69.2 million shares were sold to Vayupak, a mutual fund run by the Krung Thai Bank. “The Cabinet agreed the government will reduce […]

In largest ever airline rescue package, Germany bails out struggling Lufthansa

Lufthansa

In the biggest ever bailout package in aviation history, Lufthansa and the German government have finalised the terms of a €9 billion ($9.8 billion) rescue deal, following weeks of intense negotiations over the future of the airline. The rescue package will give the government a 20% stake in the group, which owns airlines in Germany, […]

Aftershocks of the aviation crisis will extend to 2023: IATA

IATA

Any comeback by the beleaguered airline industry will extend into 2023, according to new data released by the International Air Transport Association (IATA). IATA estimates that passenger traffic won’t rebound to pre-crisis levels until at least 2023. It expects that global passenger demand in 2021 will be 24% below 2019 levels and 32% lower than […]

Cyclone Amphan destroys Sundarban delta, UNESCO’s world heritage site

sunderbans national park kolkotta

Embankments in the Sundarban delta — a UNESCO world heritage site — have been breached by the surge whipped up by cyclone Amphan which has inundated several kilometres of the islands. The sea-level rise in the delta, which is much higher than average global sea-level rise, will contribute to migration from the region. For around […]

Six hundred plus flights get cancelled on Monday, as air travel gets mired in lock-down blues

flights

Indian domestic air travel may have resumed on Monday after being grounded for two months, but with many states remaining skeptical about opening airports, over 600 flights were cancelled in just one day alone. Flights are yet to resume in large states like West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh, and operations in airports including Mumbai, Chennai […]

Sinclairs Hotels introduces new initiatives to keep guests safe

As a result of the unprecedented crisis resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic, all the seven properties of Sinclairs Hotels at Siliguri, Darjeeling, Dooars, Kalimpong, Burdwan, Port Blair and Ooty are currently closed. The launch of the eighth property in the Sinclairs’ chain – Sinclairs Gangtok -scheduled on April 15 had to be postponed. In response […]

Supreme Court allows middle seat booking in Air India flights for next 10 days

ai rindia

The Supreme Court on Monday allowed national carrier Air India to operate international flight service with middle seat booking. The court was hearing a petition filed by the Centre and Air India after Bombay High Court questioned why the airline was not keeping the middle seats vacant in international flights. “Air India shall be allowed […]

Kerala releases SOP for domestic flyers, who will now need a travel permit

flights

The Kerala government has released a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for domestic airline travel. The government has asked all the returnees to register themselves on the ‘COVID-19 Jagratha’ portal after obtaining a flight ticket to get a travel permit. The travel permit will then be issued along with a QR Code on the registered mobile […]

Hospitality startup Bobobox swims against the tide, secures funding

Bobobox indonesia

Indonesian hospitality startup BoboBox has secured US$11.5 million in a series A round led by Horizons Ventures and Alpha JWC Ventures. Other new and existing backers such as Kakao Investments, Sequoia Surge, and Mallorca Investments also participated in the round, according to a statement. Bobobox provides affordable hotel accommodation in the form of modular capsules. […]

US imposes travel restrictions on foreign nationals coming in from Brazil

White House USA

The US has imposed travel restrictions on foreign nationals who have been to Brazil in the last 14 days. Brazil has become a major coronavirus hotspot in recent times, registering the second highest number of cases globally. A White House spokeswoman said the restrictions would help ensure new cases are not brought into the US. […]

Air New Zealand to open lounges from today, sans alcohol

Air Newzealand

A number of Air New Zealand lounges will reopen across the country today. The lounges will not be serving alcohol, but plans to introduce more food and alcohol options in the coming weeks. There will also be a maximum of 100 people allowed in the lounges at any one time. The Auckland Regional, Wellington Domestic […]

Pool parties, wave surfing, golfing, picnics – Americans break free over Memorial Day weekend as health concerns rise

USA pool party

Outdoor partying is on in full swing in many parts of the United States, as people continue to take total advantage of the new found freedom. After several weeks of lockdown, citizens seem to have broken free causing a great deal of concern for health authorities. Despite several weeks of warnings from health officials to […]