TAP Air Portugal is in turmoil as air traffic to Portugal plummets under the impact of the covid crisis. The airline has been hit hard by the new restrictions introduced by the Portuguese government on 31 January. These measures are designed to contain the spread of the mutant version of covid-19.
The covid crisis is having a particularly severe impact on the country. As of February 1, there were 5,805 new cases, i.e. 726,321 people positive for the virus, and 12,757 deaths (+275 in 24 hours).
Portugal has therefore entered a state of extreme confinement. The state of emergency now restricts the movement of people within the country. The latest government decree also stipulates that "...travel outside mainland Europe Portuguese citizens by road, rail, air, river or sea, are prohibited" .
L'Germany has suspended all its flights to Portugal, while the government has closed the border with Spain. Le United Kingdom has put Portugal back on its red list of high-risk countries. As a result, airlines have been grounded.
Flights to France remain secure thanks to ethnic traffic
TAP Air Portugal was already flying at only 27% of capacity, compared with February 2020. Against this backdrop, it is putting the brakes on further by once again reducing its 20% offer. Let 7% capacity in February 2020.
Despite this significant drop in business, the carrier will continue to operate certain routes. It will continue to operate domestic routes. This mainly concerns routes from Lisbon and Porto to Madeira and the Azores.
It said it would also maintain routes to destinations where there is a strong Portuguese diaspora. The list includes Europe Amsterdam, Barcelona, Brussels, Geneva, Luxembourg, Lyon, Madrid, Malaga, Marseille, Milan, Nice, Paris, Rome, Toulouse, Valencia and Zurich.
On the intercontinental front, the carrier continues to operate flights to Newark, Boston, Toronto, Bissau, Conakry, Dakar, Maputo, Praia, São Vicente and São Tomé e Príncipe.
To add a little more to TAP Air Portugal's difficulties, the government has decided to ban flights to Brazil because of the mutation of the virus in that country. As a result, the carrier's "air bridge" between Lisbon and Brazilian cities is at a standstill for fortnight. The Europe/Brazil axis is a major factor in the company's business. In 2019, its market share on this route amounted to 26%.
