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Singapore Airlines cuts 50% capacity over border closures

Fathmath Shaahunaz
18 March 2020, MVT 18:42
An aircraft of Singapore Airlines lands at Velana International Airport in Maldives. FILE PHOTO: HUSSAIN WAHEED / MIHAARU
Fathmath Shaahunaz
18 March 2020, MVT 18:42

Singapore Airlines announced Tuesday that it will cut capacity by 50 percent over increasing border closures around the world due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a press release, the national career of Singapore stated that the company was suspending additional services across its network, and as such will operate only 50 percent of the originally scheduled capacity until the end of April.

The airline estimated that further cuts will be made to its capacity due to the growing scale of border controls and their increasing repercussions on the aviation industry.

“We have lost a large amount of our traffic in a very short time, and it will not be viable for us to maintain our current network. Make no mistake – we expect the pace of this deterioration to accelerate. The SIA Group must be prepared for a prolonged period of difficulty", said Singapore Airlines' CEO Goh Choon Phong.

The company assured that it was taking steps to build up liquidity and that it will consult unions on steps to further mitigate costs.

The World Health Organization has classified the spread of COVID-19 as a global pandemic. The novel coronavirus has infected more than 200,000 and claimed over 8,000 lives around the world. However, out of those infected, more than 82,800 have recovered.

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