The Corona Crunch

The Corona Crunch

March 2020
11 min read
Jason Clampet and Madhu Unnikrishnan

Issue Overview

It’s not just a problem for Chinese airlines anymore. Or just airlines in Asia. The Covid-19 virus outbreak is now obliterating demand for travel across the entire world. Suddenly, airlines even hearty and healthy just a week earlier find themselves burning through cash as planes to cities like Milan and Seoul run empty, and as ticket sales evaporate. For the already distressed, the virus could prove lethal, as it already has for one small U.K. carrier: Flybe.