Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Friday, 24 July 2020

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response

Covid-19: Impact on International Travel

Mr. Evan Cullen:

I would say it is most of it right now because salaries, fuel costs and so on have all been greatly reduced. To the best of my knowledge, not one aircraft lessor has written off any repayments. Airlines are getting forbearance; they are not getting forgiveness. Sooner or later, whatever deals have been done, the lessors will come knocking on the door.

That does not take away from the cash burn we are managing. All airlines are having to do it. What is unique about Aer Lingus and other Irish airlines is that there is no Government assistance for them, whereas the UK Government is assisting at least one Irish airline that we know of and other governments throughout Europe are doing the same for their airlines. The USA has poured enormous amounts of cash into its airline industry because it does not want it to go down. The Irish Government, for reasons we do not understand, is excluding its aviation industry from support, including in the stimulus plan that was announced yesterday. None of the airlines where we have members will get one penny from the stimulus plan because there is a restriction of €1 million applying under the credit guarantee scheme. When we have airlines burning in excess of €1 million a day, that stimulus plan means nothing to them.

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