 said on Wednesday that he does not anticipate the 'Indian strain' of coronavirus to be the most significant obstacle for the coming European travel season.){kind=link}
Lundgren warned against the impact of the UK government’s actions on the airline industry
The chief executive of EasyJet (LON:EZJ) said on Wednesday that he does not anticipate the ‘Indian strain’ of coronavirus to be the most significant obstacle for the coming European travel season.
Johan Lundgren added that another summer without travel would be disastrous for the UK’s airline industry.
The UK has until now placed strict restrictions on travel for most holiday destinations to the detriment of both airline and travel industries. This is in light of the discovery of the new variant, first found in India, and now spreading across the United Kingdom.
Across the continent, Germany has banned non-essential travel, while France has hinted at a similar policy.
Lundgren said the industry’s future could be on the line if a return to more normal modes of travel are not permitted in time for this summer.
“I don’t think that UK aviation as an industry can go through another lost summer without grave consequences,” he said at an online industry event on Wednesday.
Lundgren argues that the new variant would not be a major concern as vaccines would protect against it.
“I don’t think that the outlook…is that because of the Indian variant the summer is ruined,” he added.
Lundgren’s major worry is that the UK sticks to its current policy of having Portugal as the only major travel destination open to Brits.
The EasyJet share price is down by 0.3% to 982.40p as the end of the day approaches.