MONTREAL -- A new economic analysis by Airports Council International (ACI) World predicts that, at a global level, the COVID-19 pandemic will wipe out more than 38 percent of passenger traffic and about 44 percent of airport revenues in 2020.

In an economic bulletin published on April 1, ACI World predicted that 38.1 percent of global passenger traffic will be lost when compared to its pre-COVID-19 forecast. This is equivalent to 3.6 billion passengers in absolute terms.

This shortfall in the number of passengers and the cancellation of flights will continue to result in reduced revenues. While the industry was expected to generate about $172 billion, ACI predicts it could lose about 44 percent or more than $76 billion by the end of this year.

"A drastic decline of such magnitude for the global airport industry represents an existential threat," ACI World Director General Angela Gittens said. "A swift, effective and equitable economic policy response from governments is needed to protect millions of jobs, protect essential operations, and give the industry the greatest chance to weather the storm and recover quickly."

A recovery may take 12-18 months to reach pre-crisis traffic levels and the industry may not record pre-COVID-19 traffic volumes again before the end of 2021, acccording to ACI's analysis.

ACI expects to see the fastest recovery in domestic passenger traffic. In the case of international passenger traffic, the recovery will take longer, as any international flight implies reciprocal permissions, while various countries will emerge from the current crisis at different times with varying pace of relaxation of the recently imposed restrictions.

Source: Airports Council International