The chief executive of Qatar Airways has poured cold water on hopes for a rapid recovery in aviation and warned of a need for more co-operation in creating vaccine passports to save the industry.
“I think the aviation recovery will not happen for quite a long period of time . . . I don’t see that the worst is over yet,” Akbar Al Baker said in an interview.
The Qatari executive struck a more pessimistic tone than the bosses of many big European and American airlines, who predict a rebound in flying in the coming months.
US airline bosses have said the worst impact of the crisis had passed, while in Europe there are hopes for a revival in travel once border restrictions ease.
But Al Baker believes vaccines are only a “stopgap” solution because it is still not known how long they offer protection against Covid-19.
The UK could end up with fourth, fifth or sixth waves of cases after it opens up its borders to international travel, he warned.
Qatar Airways is one of several Gulf airlines to have grown rapidly over the past 30 years, boosted by their owners’ deep pockets to connect points across the globe through their hub airports in the Middle East.
But they are reliant on long-haul travel, which is expected to recover more slowly than domestic and short-haul regional flights. Qatar is currently on the UK’s “red list” of countries, meaning direct flights are banned.
Al Baker urged countries and bodies such as the World Health Organization to work more closely to develop vaccine passports.
“Every country is producing their own apps, their own protocols, and this will, at the end, not work,” he said.
Several digital health passes are being developed, including airline group Iata’s travel pass, which Qatar Airways is…