Can a busy summer travel season revive the aviation industry? - a podcast by The National UAE

Heading into summer, airline bookings in April and May were "pretty positive" for domestic travel while bookings for international journeys remained "exceptionally weak" as travel restrictions continued in many countries due to new cases of the Covid-19 virus, according to the International Air Transport Association (Iata).


To determine if summer will provide a lift, a patchwork of issues are in play: a global vaccination effort rallying sentiment in some parts of the world to a devastating spike in Covid-19 cases throughout India and parts of southeast Asia. Meanwhile, can pandemic-era pushes for immunity passports, digitalisation and carbon offsets prove to have staying power?


This week, The National's aviation correspondent Deena Kamel joins co-hosts Mustafa Alrawi and Kelsey Warner to discuss the outlook for travel's peak season.

In this episode:
Can aviation be revived? (2m 26s)

Shifting trends and behaviour changes (5m 46s)

Emirates capacity increase (13m 14s)

Four factors in the future of travel (15m 50s)

The enduring changes (18m 30s)


Read more

• Tourism activity in oil-importing Mena countries expected to bounce back by 2023


• Domestic travel rises globally in March as international passenger traffic remains low


• UAE ambassador: UK travel announcement is 'disappointing for families'


• Air Arabia posts first-quarter net profit despite Covid-19 pandemic


• Will India's soaring Covid infections derail its economic rebound?

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