The Dubai-based airline, Emirates, posted an annual loss of $5.5 billion for the 2020-2021 financial year. This is, according to the airline’s chairman and chief executive, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, “its first-ever loss in over three decades.”  

The annual revenue of the carrier fell 66% to $8.4 billion, due to “significant flight and travel restrictions across the globe.” The previous year, Emirates had made a profit of $288 million. 

Besides earnings, Emirates’ staff size was also adversely affected by the pandemic - it slumped by 31% to about 75,000 over the period under review.  

Commenting on the situation, the airline’s chief executive said: “No one knows when the pandemic will be over but we know recovery will be patchy.” The group, he added, received capital injections totaling AED11.3 billion (Ed. note: $3.1 billion) from our ultimate owner the Government of Dubai, enabling the airline to preserve most of its workforce, and sustain operations as we chart a path to recovery. 

Emirates’ ordeal is faced by most, if not all, airlines around the globe; African airlines have not been spared. According to figures from the African Airlines Association (AFRAA), in 2020, African airlines’ turnover plunged by around $8 billion. While African governments would gain from following the example of the Emirati government, this is unfortunately not the case, said Abderahmane Berthe, secretary-general of AFRAA. “Many airlines are on the verge of bankruptcy...Unfortunately, the support we have asked governments and other donors to provide is only coming in very slowly,” he said. 

The losses - both Emirates’ and African airlines’ - align with forecasts by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) which said last April that the global airline industry should record net losses of $47.7 billion in 2021, as the pain from the Covid-19 pandemic continues. 

Founded in 1985, Emirates is one of the largest airlines in the world. It serves 19 countries in Africa. In the 2020-2021 fiscal year, the latter contributed only 10% of the carrier’s total revenue. Considering the slow rate of vaccination and low testing across Africa, despite the continent accounting for only 2.9% of the infections around the world, this share may not increase substantially as the airline bounces back. 

Schadrac Akinocho