Turbulence Ahead: Airlines Navigate Trade Wars and Environmental Targets

Global airline leaders face challenges from trade wars, environmental goals, and rising costs at an annual summit in India. Despite post-pandemic recovery, the industry battles plane delivery delays and fare setbacks. Falling fuel prices offer some respite, but sustainability and conflict zones raise urgent concerns.

In New Delhi, global airline executives gathered to address a mix of pressing challenges, including geopolitical tensions and stringent environmental targets. As the industry recovers to pre-pandemic passenger levels, it now faces cost-related hurdles like prolonged delivery times and supply chain disruptions.

The U.S.-initiated trade war has upended tariff norms, creating uncertainty in the aerospace sector. While European and Asian airlines report robust demand, U.S. carriers see a decline, complicating passenger behavior forecasts amid inflation and waning consumer confidence.

Despite these challenges, airlines are buoyed by falling fuel prices and a weakened U.S. dollar. Meanwhile, safety concerns are mounting, with conflict zones affecting operations and sustainability goals appearing increasingly difficult to achieve, due to high costs and limited availability of sustainable aviation fuel.

(With inputs from agencies.)