Speaking during the annual Scottish Passengers Agents’ Association (SPAA) dinner on Thursday (23 February), Walsh said he expects the aviation industry to turn a profit this year.
"We hope to make about $5 billion US dollars collectively, having lost $190 billion in 2020, 2021 and 2022, as traffic is recovering strongly," he told attendees.
"People often ask me, ’how does this compare to what it was like running an airline in 2001 and 2009?’.
"In 2001, industry revenue fell by 6%. In 2009, revenues fell by 16.5%. In 2020, revenues fell by 56%. We have not seen anything like this before."
Walsh said the industry is currently operating at around 69% of 2019 levels, due to the impact of remaining Covid-19 restrictions in Asia, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the cost of living crisis.
"So we are getting there and now that China has opened, I think we will see a very strong recovery in 2023," Walsh predicted.
The war in Ukraine has also hindered aviation’s recovery, Walsh said, with the closure of Russian airspace making travel between Europe and Asia harder and the impact the conflict has had on oil prices.
"There’s just no way this industry can absorb this massive increase in costs as a result of the significant increase in oil prices," Walsh continued.
He also discussed the aviation’s sustainability goals, and assured delegates the sector will achieve net zero carbon emissions in 2050.
"It’s going to be a hard task to get there, but we are absolutely determined to get there," he said.
"We are now aligned with the science and we are aligned with the ambition of many governments, and the main way we do this will be through sustainable aviation fuel."
