China’s top three airlines lose billions to pandemic

BEIJING: China’s largest airline on Wednesday reported billions in losses over the last year, as Covid-19 wiped out international travel and virus variants dash hopes of a quick rebound. The country’s biggest carrier by passenger numbers — China Southern Airlines — reported a loss of 10.8 billion yuan ($1.65 billion) for 2020, despite Chinese domestic travel flickering back to life.

“With the promotion of vaccination, travel restrictions in various countries will be gradually lifted,” it said in a report. Flag carrier Air China booked a full-year loss of 14.4 billion yuan ($2.2 billion), while China Eastern Airlines posted a loss of 11.8 billion yuan ($1.8 billion).