Aviation veteran Christoph Mueller last night paid tribute to airline executives for the amazing job they have done, building up networks that allowed people to fly everywhere, earning dividends for investors and shareholders and paying bonuses to staff for the past 25 years.

“To see it all melting away like snow in the Sahara is a personal tragedy,” said the airline executive, also dubbed as “crisis CEO” for the roles he’s held with numerous airlines such as Malaysia Airlines and Aer Lingus. Most recently, he was chief digital and innovation officer of Emirates.

Mueller was speaking at the CAPA Masterclass last evening, in which chairman emeritus Peter Harbison predicted that it would be a long road back for the airline industry, and that it won’t be the same for at least five years.

Firstly, there will be fewer airlines. Yes, some will be saved by governments and that’s not a bad thing, said Mueller. He said, post-911, the European perspective was that Chapter 11 was seen as a competitive advantage for US airlines because it allowed for an orderly process for the carriers to get back in shape.

“If state aid can be used as a proxy to simulate a Chapter 11 situation over the next few years to restructure airlines, I have a positive sentiment about that for the first time.”

Christoph Mueller: His biggest concern is that funds set aside for digitalisation and innovation of the customer experience will dry up and the industry set back 10-15 years.

Yes, there may be fears that governments, in having bailed out airlines, could become more protectionistic but Mueller argued that if it’s managed in a way that’s temporary or be similarly structured like private equity or a sovereign wealth fund, the rules of the game could remain the same – that is, governments keep arm’s length.

“I do not know of a single airline CEO who would want a government bailout, they have worked in a highly privatized environment for a long while.”

Secondly, just as 911 changed the rules of security screening for airlines and airports, Covid-19 will change health screenings. Mueller said it was vital that an internationally-recognised body come up with guidelines that can be used by all airlines and airports.

“After 911, we saw a huge surge in security screenings which, 19 years after, are still the same. Airlines will take a hit if medical screening is introduced. There needs to be an international institution that steps in so that not every country is coming up with their own screening procedures.

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