For airlines, Joe Biden’s announcements, Thursday, December 2, are yet another blow: the President of the United States now requires a negative PCR test of less than 24 hours for all foreign travelers entering the United States, including including the vaccinated. Suffice to say that the motivation of tourists is likely to take a hit. Barely a month after the reopening of US borders, airlines expect to see a sharp drop in bookings, and even fear a cascade of cancellations.
You should know that the United States is one of the main destinations for the French. Before the crisis, during a normal year, nearly two million tourists from France went there. For a company like Air France-KLM, for example, American routes represent more than 40% of turnover. The same for Lufthansa, half of its long-haul fleet is assigned to transatlantic flights.
Enough to plumb the sector even more, especially since the companies were hoping to refuel for the Christmas holidays, they wanted to make up for it. They even added flights from France to major American cities. And the demand towards New York or Miami was very strong this end of the year. If there is a brake on the health situation, their finances will suffer. This is the case with Air France-KLM, for example. Admittedly, the company has just been granted two more years – until 2025 – to repay state-guaranteed bank loans of four billion euros, but it was relying heavily on this overseas market to raise the bar.
More generally, these restrictions promise to slow down the recovery, because it’s not just tourism. The United States remains an essential trading partner of the hexagon, the second for the trade of goods. We export our planes, engines, electrical equipment, steel, luxury products, wine across the Atlantic, etc. If the borders are closed, these relations and trade may decline.