Virgin Atlantic, which was recently at risk of entering into administration, has this week unveiled a £1.2 billion rescue deal that is expected to salvage thousands of aviation jobs. The airline has reached a funding agreement with key financial stakeholders, making it one of the first users of a new court-sanctioned process introduced as part of government reforms to enable smoother corporate restructurings during the pandemic.
While the rescue package has removed the risk of the airline collapsing into administration in the medium term,Virgin Atlantic is still cutting around a third of its work force. It has also ceased flights from London Gatwick as part of its restructuring plans. It will instead concentrate its UK operations out of London Heathrow and Manchester with flight schedules due to restart on 20 July.
This week has also seen Budapest Airport in Hungary welcome growing passenger numbers and new routes, while Brisbane Airport in Australia has inaugurated its second runway. And, having welcomed Blue Islands as a new carrier last week, Southampton Airport in the UK is now calling for its local community, businesses and organisations to get behind its plan to extend the runway. Steve Szalay, Southampton’s Managing Director, said the 164m extension is “essential” to ensuring the airport thrives.
“A highly connected regional airport is vital to the recovery of the regional economy. To achieve its potential, our region needs a successful airport that can provide strong air connectivity.
“The extra length of runway will enable us to bring in the routes and airlines needed to drive the recovery of the economy and support local business and trade,” he added.
It’s still early days and the road to recovery is still filled with twists and turns. Nonetheless, it’s great to hear airports and their partners not just reporting on how they are restarting operations but how they are forging ahead with plans to aid a successful medium and long-term recovery.
Have a great weekend and if you haven’t already registered for next week’s Africa Tomorrow virtual business conference on Tuesday 21 July, you can do so by following this link.
I’ll be moderating the airport session, looking at the “new normal” for African airports. Having attended a rehearsal this week with my fellow panellists – Fundi Sithebe from Airports Company South Africa, Lawal Abdullahi from Federal Airports Authority Nigeria and Nicolas Deviller from Ravinala Airports in Madagascar and ADP International – I’m excited for what is set to be an enlightening discussion and a packed day of conferencing sessions.
Best wishes,
Chloë Greenbank, Regional Gateway Editor.
