Emirates reports huge loss after air industry devastated by pandemic

An Emirates Airbus A380 at Manchester Airport (Dave Thompson/PA)

Emirates Group, the owner of the Middle East’s biggest carrier, reported it lost 3.8 billion US dollars (£2.9bn) in the first half of the year, its first net loss in over three decades after the pandemic wiped out air travel.

The state-owned company said revenue for its Dubai-based airline, Emirates, had dropped 75% to 3.2 billion US dollars from the same period a year ago, even with this year’s 52% reduction in operating costs and rise in cargo traffic.