Cindi Cook
20 February 2020•Update: 21 February 2020
PARIS
French-Dutch airline Air France-KLM has reported a 31% drop in 2019 net profit and predicts losing up to another €200 million ($216 million) for February and March in light of reduced travel during the global Covid-19, or the coronavirus, outbreak.
France's main carrier has seen its operating result drop 19 percent to €1.14 billion ($1.23 billion), in an announcement on Thursday.
Net profit came in for the third quarter at €219 million ($236,5 million), according to the announcement.
Air France-KLM says it will resume service to and from both Shanghai and Beijing starting March 16. Even more dramatically, the airline plans to carry out flights to Wuhan, in Hubei Province, the capital city and what has been the epicenter of the outbreak, as of March 29.
Airline revenue is estimated to have dropped by approximately €4.5 billion ($4.86 billion) globally as a result of Covid-19.
The virus has so far claimed the lives of 2,129 people in 27 countries with a reported 72,748 cases of those ill with the virus worldwide.
