Ukrainian low-cost airline SkyUp has lost over $30 million since January, the company’s press service told Ukrainian media Interfax-Ukraine on Aug. 8.
Ukraine suspended all regular passenger air travel starting in March to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Only special repatriation or charter flights operated from March 17 to June 15. Now, the airspace is slowly reopening, but the European Union is still closed for Ukrainians, and the 11-aircraft airline hopes the borders will fully reopen soon.
“We are now expecting that the countries will gradually open their borders to Ukrainian citizens and we will return to operating flights in full and restore our team,” the company stated.
Travel restrictions have severely affected the airline, which had 18% fewer passengers compared to last year. Besides, the airline founded in 2018 had to cut 10% of its employees.
SkyUp’s rival Ukraine International Airlines also reported losses. On April 2, it stated that it could lose at least $60 million by the time the quarantine ends.
The losses of the two Ukrainian airlines reflect a bleak trend: aviation suffers around the world. According to Alexandre de Juniac, CEO of the trade association for world’s airlines International Air Transport Aviation, 2020 will be a catastrophic year for aviation globally, with the industry losing over $80 billion.
“Financially, 2020 will go down as the worst year in the history of aviation,” De Juniac said.
