The partner airlines had been negotiating for weeks with their respective governments, as carriers worldwide are collapsing or seeking government bailouts. The past several weeks of travel restrictions have upended the entire industry, and Air France and KLM said earlier this month that they expect their joint traffic to be down more than 90% in the coming months.
With no clear end to the crisis in sight, Air France will get
“We have to save our national airline," French Finance Minister
In exchange for the bailout, Le Maire said the government would set conditions of profitability and more environmentally sustainable, less polluting policies.
In
He said the government was coming to KLM’s rescue “because of the vital importance that this business, combined with (
KLM “is the first domino at the start of a long row. If KLM falls, it doesn’t just have consequences for the company and its staff but for all the (dominoes) that follow. For Schiphol, for ground staff” and other businesses reliant on international aviation links, Hoekstra said.
The Dutch minister said the support would come with strings attached. “It’s tax money from us all and that means we will ask for something in return.”
The company would have run out of cash “in the very near future” without this help, he said in a video message to staff and the tax-paying public. He promised the company would “rethink our model immediately” to stay competitive once virus confinement measures start allowing more air travel.
Smith announced last month he was giving up his bonus this year and taking a 25% cut to his salary, and KLM CEO
All the major
The virus has not only brought government restrictions on travel, but has stoked fear among the public of being trapped in a plane while sharing recycled air with people who might be infected. Airlines are spending more on refunds than they’re earning on new bookings, and airline executives say their companies could take years to recover.
The French government is also considering a
Corder reported from
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