Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) and Edelweiss are pleased and thankful that both chambers of the Swiss Federal Assembly – the National Council and the Council of States – have approved by clear majorities the guarantee credit to help Swiss air transport cope with the consequences of the current coronavirus crisis.
“We see this support from the Swiss Federal Assembly as a confirmation that the majority of the people of Switzerland are also behind us and believe in us,” says Reto Francioni, Chairman of the SWISS Board of Directors. “Which makes it all the more of a commitment for us to secure our company’s future.”
The two airlines will meet the requirements of the Federal Council’s climate protection goals and the measures in the event of any workforce resizing for restructuring reasons. SWISS and Edelweiss welcome the clear distinction that the Swiss parliament has made between the actions required for Swiss aviation to master the current crisis and Switzerland’s broader climate policy. If there is no European solution to the issue of reimbursement, SWISS and Edelweiss will fulfil the condition and reimburse the travel agencies after September 30, 2020, for the money the two airlines received for flights which did not take place because of the Corona crisis.
The two chambers of the Federal Assembly have also laid the legal foundation and approved the corresponding credit facilities for supporting aviation-associated businesses in Switzerland if necessary. These businesses and their operations are also essential to the provision of safe and reliable Swiss air transport services. In taking these decisions, the Federal Assembly has underlined its appreciation of the importance of air transport to the Swiss economy and its desire to maintain this key systemic function beyond the present crisis.
“SWISS and Edelweiss are grateful for this clear affirmation,” says Thomas Klühr, CEO of SWISS and Chairman of the Edelweiss Board of Directors. “And we view it as an impulse and an incentive to reconnect the Swiss economy, politics, society and the Swiss tourism sector with the world’s prime commercial centres and leisure destinations as promptly as we can.”
This post was published on 6 May 2020 22:56
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