Following last week’s in-person Arabian Travel Market (ATM), the Middle East’s largest travel and tourism showcase continued this week with the opening today (Monday, May 24, 2021) of ATM Virtual.
- Three-day event opens under the theme “A news dawn for travel and tourism.”
- President of Emirates believes demand for air travel could come back at a staggering rate by Q4 2021 if the vaccine program beats the virus.
- Aviation, regional tourism, destinations, and technology are some of the key topics discussed on the first day of ATM Virtual 2021.
Under the same theme of “A new dawn for travel & tourism,” the three-day event, which was specifically designed for those industry professionals unable to attend the in-person ATM event, kicked off this year with Sir Tim Clark, President of Emirates, who gave a candid outlook about the recovery of the aviation industry.
During a virtual conversation with top aviation consultant, John Strickland, who conducted the interview from London, Sir Tim initially gave his opinion on the recovery timescale of the aviation sector.
“The ideal situation is that the vaccine program beats the virus by Autumn of this year and we get some relief then demand will come back at a staggering rate. Low cost (airlines) will benefit from intra-European travel, the US domestic market, China’s domestic market and international travel will (also) return in large numbers,” said Sir Tim.
“But the problem (with this scenario) will be twofold. The ability of airlines to meet the demand when it comes and two, the conditionality of country access requirements,” he added.
