The International Air Transport Association (IATA) estimated that the Icelandic volcano crisis cost airlines more than $1.7 billion in lost revenue through Tuesday — six days after the initial eruption.
For a three-day period (17-19 April), when disruptions were greatest, lost revenues reached $400 million per day.
“Lost revenues now total more than $1.7 billion for airlines alone. At the worst, the crisis impacted 29 percent of global aviation and affected 1.2 million passengers a day. The scale of the crisis eclipsed 9/11 when US airspace was closed for three days,” Giovanni Bisignani, IATA’s Director General and CEO, said in a news release.
IATA said some cost savings related to the flight groundings. For example, the fuel bill is $110 million a day less compared to normal, but airlines face added costs including from passenger care, officials said.
“For an industry that lost $9.4 billion last year and was forecast to lose a further $2.8 billion in 2010, this crisis is devastating. It is hitting hardest where the carriers are in the most difficult financial situation. Europe’s carriers were already expected to lose $2.2 billion this year — the largest in the industry,” Bisignani said.
