Egypt's airline industry to lose $1.6 billion in revenues and 9.5 million passengers due to the coronavirus crisis, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said. The impact of the disease means the country is “risking almost 205,560 jobs and around $2.4 billion in contribution to the Egyptian economy,” the association said in a report published on Thursday. The IATA estimated that airlines in Africa and the Middle East have lost $23 billion as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. It called for “urgent action” from governments to provide financial support to rescue the hard-hit industry. Airlines around the world made unprecedented cuts to flights amid lockdowns and widening travel curbs to contain the spread of the virus. Earlier this week, Egypt's private airline companies appealed to the civil aviation minister to intervene to help stop the losses of the companies. Egypt extended a suspension of international flights until mid-April as part of drastic measures to curb the spread of the virus. Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said last month that local aviation firms would suffer losses of EGP 2.25 billion (approximately $143 million) due to the latest measures.
