Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker believed that low-cost carriers (LCCs) would struggle in the Gulf region. He shared this statement amid the nature of several airlines in the region consolidating in the current conditions.
Unique times
During a Fireside Chat hosted by Aviation Week, the executive spoke candidly about the state of the aviation industry amid the global health crisis. Furthermore, he offered some insight on the future of the market.
Al Baker doesn’t think that demand will return to 2019 levels for the next three to five years. He feels it will take a miracle to return to those levels in the current climate. Moreover, the businessman feels they of there is a second wave, and there are more airlines having to consolidate, there could be trouble. Especially, when it comes to Qatar’s neighbors.
“I don’t think there will be too many airlines left if there is a second spike or any consolidation. How can you have consolidation with somebody is your adversary all around you? And this is what happened to us in 2017 will never be forgotten. This memory will never be erased from our minds,” he said in the discussion hosted by Aviation Week.
“We’re seeing that there is a talk of consolidation between Emirates and FlyDubai, but there should have never been a FlyDubai. And the same is now happening with our another neighbor, Abu Dhabi. Etihad has completely shrank and now they are looking at giving JVs to foreign carriers like Wizz Air.”
New movements
At the beginning of this month, Wizz Air completed its first flight to Abu Dhabi. The Hungarian low-cost airline is also planning to open a new subsidiary in UAE. Ultimately, it is looking to have 100 aircraft based in Abu Dhabi by the end of 2035.
However, Al Baker feels that low-cost outfits don’t have any future in the gulf region. Along with the view that passengers in the region are used to high quality, he said they LCCs are more suited to certain big catchment areas. These firms are user to having a large domestic network, whereas the Gulf doesn’t have that.
Additionally, Al Baker said that that every long-haul low-cost fails. He mentioned Joon, Scoot, Germanwings, and AirAsia X as some examples.
Change of scene
Altogether, there has been a massive shift in the aviation industry over the last few months, and this transition will continue for several more years. Therefore, there will undoubtedly be changes in the way people travel going forward. However, according to Al Akbar, some passenger habits will remain the same.
What are your thoughts about Akbar Al Baker’s comments about low-cost carriers in the Gulf region? Do you think there is a future for these firms in the area? Let us know what you think of these statements in the comment section.
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