4. Will Investor Confidence Rebound?
In the past year, the aviation industry has seen massive fleet groundings, airlines restructuring financially, rental deferrals, early asset returns, an inactive secondary market and hits to OEMs’ orderbooks. As the industry looks toward a long-term recovery, restoring the confidence of investors hard hit by the crisis will be essential.
But for any recovery to take place, it is the resumption of air traffic that is pivotal. COVID-19 has been a unique crisis with few precedents, says Simon Finn, director of aviation for EMEA at MUFG Bank. He sees passenger confidence as being like investor confidence. “It’s been notable that where restrictions are lifted, rather like investors, passengers aren’t too deterred by COVID-19 or the challenges that are facing the vaccination process,” he says.
Ultimately, Finn says companies operating in a certain way will be the ones who will attract investors. “It is those who are nimble, quick and with fast operational management and the best business models that are probably going to prove the most attractive to the investment community,” he says.