AIRLINES are set to turn to the trade to restore consumer
confidence in air travel following the terrorist attacks in the US.
Carriers are bracing themselves for a slump in air travel
and huge financial losses and will be battling to woo passengers back in the
air with a flood of lower fares and promotions.
City analysts and aviation experts believe airlines have no
choice but to launch a sales and marketing blitz through all distribution channels.
Sales and marketing departments at British Airways, Virgin
Atlantic and many other carriers are understood to be working on a series of
trade and consumer initiatives in a bid to restore consumer confidence.
“Airlines have an instant capacity problem right now and the
biggest challenge is to fill seats,” said independent aviation consultant and
former Manchester International Airport director of business development, Bill
Savage.
“Inevitably there will be deep discounting. Airlines will
want maximum distribution and we are likely to see seats dumped at glorious
offers on their websites and through the big consolidators such as Airline
Network, Gold Medal and Trailfinders,” Savage added.
No airline was prepared to comment on their plans, only to
say the priority was to restore operations to a normal schedule.