Future of the Airlines.
After this pandemic and worldwide depression I predict a much smaller airline industry to emerge, similar to before deregulation. Airlines without a very healthy balance sheet before this started, or government backing will go under.
What’s left will be nationalised or subject to heavy controls regarding routes, timetables and fares.
For the A380 it’s almost certainly long term storage for a couple of years and only back on a few limited routes where the numbers add up, if and when it does return.
Probably the final nail for the B737 MAX as well. Why waste billions in patching up a fundamentally flawed design for which future demand has evaporated ? There may have been a case for a solution when the order book was in the thousands, but not any more.
The US government will likely take over Boeing due to its importance to the economy and as a defence supplier. The downturn could be used to develop an all new replacement aircraft.
I believe that the future is now all twins, with A320/B737s being used to the limits of their range and B787s taking over from there. These types are already in existence in significant numbers and economical to operate, even though fuel price won’t be much of an issue for a while. High density seating in the narrow bodies and 9 across in the B787, with possibly a couple of rows of business class will be the new norm.
Suites and lie flat seats won’t be filling up anytime soon. A holiday is likely to be an annual trip to a short/mid range destination on a low cost airline, rather than long haul on a premium carrier. Short getaways to Europe from the UK will likely be replaced with coach trips to Blackpool, Rhyl, Skegness and Brighton.