Irish Examiner view: Covid likely to force a rethink on air travel

It is clear that the lifting of travel restrictions will not be enough to restore air travel to its former profitability

The news that Aer Lingus is to permanently close its cabin crew base at Shannon Airport and temporarily law off staff in Cork is a devastating blow. Picture: Brendan Gleeson

There is little reason for optimism among those working in the Irish travel industry. The multibillion-euro sector is facing a crisis that shows no signs of abating. It was the first to be shut down by the pandemic and, as seems increasingly likely, it will be among the last to reopen.

Tánaiste Leo Varadkar has already said that non-essential travel probably won’t resume until late August, but even that date is not cast in stone. There are still too many uncertainties. One of those is the risk posed by the highly transmissible Indian variant of Covid-19, with some medical experts seeking the inclusion of more countries on the mandatory hotel quarantine list while retaining international travel restrictions.