Travel industry warns of financial impact of Trump’s Europe travel ban

The travel industry, already suffering amid the coronavirus pandemic, is warning that more financial trouble will come from President Trump’s Wednesday announcement that he is restricting travel from Europe, not including Great Britain or cargo transportation.

U.S. Travel Association said that stuttering European travel will “exacerbate” the already negative impact the coronavirus has had on the industry in a press release early Thursday morning.

“In taking aggressive steps to protect the public against coronavirus, the U.S. government should now consider equally aggressive steps to protect America’s workforce and employers. The public’s health is the top concern, but now the policy conversation must address the health of the economy,” U.S. Travel Association CEO Roger Dow said in a statement.

Dow stressed that he will continue to work with the federal government to help contain the impact of the outbreak. 

“We have and will continue to engage Congress and the administration on policy steps that are necessary to ensure that travel employers — 83% of which are small businesses — can keep the lights on for their employees,” he said.

Airlines for America (A4A), which advocates for passenger and cargo U.S. airlines, said they “commend” Trump’s decision, nothing that the safety of passengers and crews is the top priority.

But, A4A CEO Nicholas Calio stressed the ongoing hit the industry is enduring.

“The unforeseen outbreak of the coronavirus has directly impacted the U.S. airline industry, which is critical to the U.S. and global economies. This action will hit U.S. airlines, their employees, travelers and the shipping public extremely hard. However, we respect the need to take this unprecedented action and appreciate the Administration’s commitment to facilitate travel and trade,” he said in a statement late Wednesday.

Calio added that the group will continue to work with the White House and “to contain this virus and mitigate its impact on the United States and countries around the world.” 

U.S. Travel Association and A4A joined a coalition of 150 travel and hospitality organizations on Tuesday to call on Americans to take precautions about traveling while remaining rational, stressing that older people and those with pre-existing health conditions should be more cautious.

The two groups also were part of a press conference last week to discuss their respective industries’ response to the virus, stressing that Americans shouldn’t overreact.

There are at least 1,320 confirmed coronavirus cases in the U.S. and 38 deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.