IATA CEO Interview: Aviation Is a Huge Enabler for Social Development
Photo Credit: Tony Tyler, Director General, IATA, speaking at the WTTC Global Summit 2015. Flickr / World Travel and Tourism Council
Skift Take
Governments might argue that sustaining aviation is also a great infrastructural burden, and warrants a tax, but Tyler is absolutely right that without aviation our economies and our societies would be radically different.
During the CAPA Airlines in Transition conference in Dublin, we had an opportunity to sit with IATA Director General and CEO Tony Tyler for a candid conversation about the future prospects and challenges of the aviation industry.
The biggest challenge the industry has faced over its history has been maintaining stable profitability. As Tyler sees it, while the industry is currently performing well, it’s always under pressure from market conditions and unfavorable governmental policies.
“The challenge for airlines is to keep the revenues ahead of costs. That's what it's all about and that's very difficult in a highly competitive industry where a lot of the costs are outside your control — whether it's the fuel price or the interest rates, or costs effectively imposed on you like airport charges and so on. IATA plays a big role in trying to keep a lid on those,” Tyler said.
“But so much of
