The number of commercial airliner orders logged during the third quarter of 2020 was the lowest on record, according to data released today by the UK aerospace trade group ADS. Just 13 new orders were placed, representing a 91.4 percent dip compared with the same period in 2019, as airlines continue to scale back capacity in the face of further fall in passenger bookings triggered by the second wave of Covid-19 infections in many parts of Europe and other regions. While September saw zero new orders, there were four and nine orders placed, respectively, in July and August. Ten of these sales were single-aisle aircraft and just three were widebodies.
The latest data from ADS recorded 173 aircraft deliveries during the third quarter, which also represented a new low point. However, the group indicated the tide might be turning with September seeing delivery numbers rising to levels not seen since February 2020, before Covid was declared a global pandemic—albeit still at lower rates than would be expected for September.
The decline in long-haul travel was reflected in September’s delivery figures with 135 of the total units being single-aisle models, while just 38 were widebodies. By the end of the third quarter there were 229 fewer airliners in the global backlog than in the second quarter of 2020, but this still only represented a 1.8 percent decline in the same period in 2019.
The ADS figures include aircraft produced by Airbus and Boeing, as well as by China’s Comac group and Russia’s UAC. The Airbus total now includes the former Bombardier C Series aircraft, which is now designated the A220. The figures do not include regional airliners, business aircraft, or civil helicopters.
Announcing another set of discouraging statistics, ADS renewed its calls for governments to shorten current quarantine requirements for travelers with effective Covid testing. ADS chief executive Paul Everitt said that the aviation industry has invested heavily in health and safety measures to reduce the risk of infection to passengers and crew.
“The quarantine period that passengers face when they return home is one of the main barriers to UK aviation’s recovery and testing can play a major role in reducing this,” he commented. “The government should implement a testing regime so that the 14-day quarantine period can be shortened. This will help improve confidence among travelers and in turn put the aviation and aerospace sectors on a path to recovery.”
Last week, the UK transport secretary said that he hopes Covid testing for passengers arriving in the UK will be available from early December in a move that could shorten the current 14-day quarantine requirement. He said that the test would be available to passengers who had already begun a period of self-isolation at their own expense. Airlines, who have been demanding progress on testing since the early stages of the crisis, have said that testing should also be available for departing travelers to build confidence among consumers.
According to figures released by the Unite trade union to The Guardian, at least 12,000 jobs in the UK aerospace industry have already been lost or are set to go in planned layoffs. This figure is based on the legally required notification of layoffs received by the union and accounts for just over a tenth of the country's 111,000 aerospace workforce in 2019, according to ADS data. Many of the job losses are at Airbus and engine maker Rolls-Royce.