Aviation counts the cost of Covid as planes pile up
The site at Alice Springs took delivery of its 100th aircraft on Wednesday.
With each aircraft representing at least 100 jobs, the growing fleet assembled in Australia’s Red Centre is a stark symbol of the cost of COVID-19.
Since February the fleet has grown, slowly at first, to what is now a steady stream of arrivals from parts of the world hardest hit by the pandemic.
The site at Alice Springs took delivery of its 100th aircraft on Wednesday.
Half have come from Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific Group, which is hopeful the dry heat of the desert will help preserve the planes until they are needed again.
Twenty-nine have been sent by Singapore Airlines and its partners Silk Air and Scoot, including seven giant A380s.
Fiji Airways, Cebu Pacific and Alliance Aviation — but not Qantas — are also using the site, operated by Asia Pacific Aircraft Storage.
“This is something we have not seen anything like since the days after the September 11 terrorist attacks,” Australian and International Pilots Association president Mark Sedgwick said.
“This will have more profound and long-reaching consequences for the industry than any other period in living memory and it is sadly confronting for aviation workers to see this.”
Teri O’Toole of the Flight Attendants Association of Australia said the sight was “heartbreaking for crew and pilots”.
“These aircraft are our workplaces, they take people to places that allow them to share time with family and loved ones,” she said.
“The ability to fly either in Australia or overseas is something that every Australian has taken for granted and we need to keep the faith that we will return to the air.”
At the start of the year, just eight aircraft were parked at the site, all of which were grounded Boeing 737 Max.
International Air Transport Association CEO Alexandre de Juniac said worldwide 46 million jobs were at risk because people were not travelling.
“About 10 per cent, or 4.8 million, of those are in the aviation industry,” he said. “The rest are spread across jobs dependent upon global connectivity.”
In the absence of a COVID vaccine, Mr de Juniac said IATA wanted to see systematic testing for the virus, prior to departure.
“We believe that should give governments the confidence to reopen borders,” he said.
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