Swiss is bullish about its financial
future, thanks to a strong global
economy. Despite some weakness
in the USA, Swiss has high exposure
there and derives much of its
intercontinental revenue from North
America. “One challenge we face is
that the average American consumer
doesn’t rate international travel high
on their list, and with a devaluing
US dollar, they may take fewer
trips to Europe,” says Biedermann.
He expects this to be somewhat
compensated by more Europeans
travelling to the US, which has a lot
to offer from a tourism perspective.
Only a few years ago, the
airline industry in Switzerland was
in turmoil. Many might have even
called it a national embarrassment.
Yet, once-proud Swissair’s successor,
w h i c h f l o u n d e r e d f r o m t h e
beginning, managed to survive.
In what really is a testament to
the commitment and spirit of its employees and
management, Swiss has put the quality back into Swiss
skies. While the airline still has more work to do before
becoming one of the world’s premier air carriers, the
foundation is in place to achieve that goal.