Emirates said on Wednesday it may need to tap Dubai’s government for an equity injection if demand doesn’t rebound from the coronavirus crisis in the next six to eight months.
Should traffic remain subdued “we will make the recommendations to the government as where to go with regards to raising more cash,” Tim Clark, the carrier’s president, said in a World Aviation Festival webinar.
He said other options for state-owned Emirates, which got $2 billion from Dubai in March last year, include taking on more debt.
Clark said he’s still hopeful that demand will revive in time for the peak summer season as vaccination roll-outs continue in the US and Europe and extend to the developing world, though his expectations of an upturn by April or May have already been dashed.
Emirates has been hit especially hard by the pandemic, with widespread border curbs making it impossible for people to make the inter-continental journeys in which it carrier specialises.
The Gulf carrier has responded by grounding a fleet of Airbus A380 superjumbos, while its Boeing 777s are struggling with lower passenger loads and mainly transporting cargo.
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