The COVID woes continue as Air Canada has reported an operating loss of $1.555 billion in the second quarter of 2020 compared to operating income of $422 million in the second quarter of 2019.
Total revenues fell from $4.738 billion in the second quarter of 2019 to $527 million in the second quarter this year, a decline of $4.211 billion or 89 per cent. Calin Rovinescu, President and CEO said "they've raised $5.5 billion in new wquity, debt and aircraft financing which gives them over $9 billion in liquidity to help whether the crisis.
This is a result of a decrease of 96% in passengers.
"As with many other major airlines worldwide, Air Canada's second quarter results confirm the devastating and unprecedented effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and government-imposed travel and border restrictions and quarantine requirements. Canada's federal and inter-provincial restrictions have been among the most severe in the world, effectively shutting down most commercial aviation in our country, which, together with otherwise fragile demand, resulted in Air Canada carrying less than four per cent of the passengers carried during last year's second quarter.
In the face of such an impossible operating environment, I am extremely proud of the outstanding efforts our team is making, doing everything possible to successfully navigate this crisis, leveraging our strong balance sheet and the many other assets we developed or acquired over the last decade," said Calin Rovinescu, President and Chief Executive Officer of Air Canada.
Rovinescu says the numbers should reinforce the "tremendous urgency for governments in Canada to take reasonable steps to safely reopen our country and restore economic activity."
Rovinescu explains that other jurisdictions globally are showing it is possible to safely and responsibly manage the complementary priorities of public health, economic recovery and job preservation and creation. Air Canada recently added its voice to that of many business and union leaders in calling on the Government of Canada to take prudent steps to replace current blanket travel restrictions and quarantines with targeted evidence-based measures that reflect current circumstances.
"For our part, Air Canada is laser-focused on business continuity and in positioning ourselves to emerge competitively as the pandemic recedes. To promote customer safety and confidence, we introduced Air Canada CleanCare+, a comprehensive, multi-layered approach to biosafety at all phases of the journey. As well, we have slowly begun to rebuild our network, recalling a small number of employees and selectively restoring the award-winning services that have placed Air Canada among the world's great airlines. For this I thank our employees for all of their incredible efforts and dedication and together we look forward to greeting our returning customers," said. Rovinescu.
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