by Mia Taylor
Last updated: 4:12 PM ET, Tue April 2, 2019
As the twists and turns surrounding Brexit continue, the air travel industry says it is paying the price.
EasyJet's CEO said during a call with the press that the crucial summer travel months will likely be weaker than expected thanks to the U.K.'s ongoing Brexit crisis.
"We had hoped for a little more clarity and certainty around Brexit at this point," CEO Johan Lundgren said during a call, according to Bloomberg. That uncertainty "has been accelerated in the last four to six weeks and that clearly has had an impact on customer demand."
Lundgren said the U.K.'s pending withdrawal from the European Union is causing travelers to hold off on booking tickets amid doubts over what Britain's future relationship with Europe will be.
As a result, EasyJet says its earnings will likely turn out to be weaker for the second half of the year, according to the Associated Press. The company lost $360 million during the first half of the year, which was not unexpected.
With Brexit now delayed until April 12 at the earliest, the entire issue is having significant repercussions. More than 300,000 travel and tourism jobs in the United Kingdom and almost 400,000 jobs in Europe could be at risk if the U.K. leaves the European Union without a deal in place as part of Brexit, according to a recent analysis from the World Travel & Tourism Council.
The travel and tourism industry contributes about $244 billion to the U.K.'s GDP (10.5 percent of the total) and supports about four million jobs (11.6 percent).
Business lobbyists have called for clarity on the matter from U.K. politicians, but those demands have gone unanswered as leaders continue the in-fighting over the country's future trading relationship with the EU.
Europe's low-cost airlines are bearing the brunt of the Brexit crisis at a time when they're already being pinched by price competition and overcapacity. The most recent example of this fact is the demise WOW Air, which shuttered last week.
Ryanair Holdings has also recently expressed concerns tied to an industrywide drop in ticket prices and over-capacity across Europe.
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