Norwegian will ground 85% of flights and temporarily lay off 7,300 staff

Following our updates this morning regarding Virgin Atlantic cutting 75% of flights and IAG’s suspension of 75% of services across the group, Norwegian has just announced that it will be cancelling 85% of its flights and temporarily laying off approximately 90% of its workforce.

The statement is below but here is a summary:

Norwegian will temporarily lay off more than 7,300 staff, which is approximately 90 per cent of its workforce, including pilots, cabin crew, maintenance and administrative staff

Thousands of flights have already been cancelled.

As of March 21, Norwegian will fly a reduced domestic schedule in Norway between Nordic capitals and some European flights will continue to be operated

All intercontinental flights are cancelled except between Scandinavia and Thailand (last flights at end of March)

The limited schedule will remain in place until at least April 17 but will be reviewed on a regular basis in line with changes in travel restrictions and demand

Customers who are directly affected by route changes and cancellations will be contacted by Norwegian via text message or e-mail

Norwegian will gradually cancel the majority of flights over the coming week and are prioritising scheduled flights that will enable customers to return to their home countries. They are also working with authorities to arrange flights for stranded passengers.

Norwegian’s CEO Jacob Schram has emphasized that the staff layoff is temporary and that he intends to retain as many employees as possible once normalcy has returned. The Norwegian authorities have also pledged to implement measures to protect the aviation industry in Norway.

Here is an extract from the Norwegian statement:

“What our industry is now facing is unprecedented and critical as we are approaching a scenario where most of our airplanes will be temporarily grounded. Several governments in Europe have already said that they will do everything they can to ensure that their airlines can continue to fly when society returns to normalcy. We appreciate that the authorities of Norway have communicated that they will implement all necessary measures to protect aviation in Norway, consequently securing crucial infrastructure and jobs,” said CEO Jacob Schram of Norwegian.

Norwegian has already discontinued a significant number of its flights and the main priority this week is to maintain as many scheduled flights as possible to ensure that customers are able to immediately return to their home destinations. The company will also work closely with the authorities to arrange flights for the benefit of stranded passengers, if necessary. Customers who are directly affected by route changes and cancellations will be contacted by Norwegian via text message or e-mail.

“We understand that this extraordinary situation is stressful for our customers, but I want to assure everyone that we are working around the clock to ensure that everyone is taken care of in the best way possible at this time,” said Schram.

As a result of most of the company’s planes being parked, Norwegian unfortunately has to temporarily lay off more than 7,300 colleagues in total which equates to approximately 90 per cent of its workforce, which includes pilots, cabin crew, maintenance and administrative staff. The layoff procedures vary from country to country and Norwegian’s team is already in constructive dialogues with union and HSE representatives at all its locations across the network.

“It is indeed with a heavy heart we have to temporarily lay off more than 7,300 of our colleagues, but we unfortunately have no choice. However, I want to emphasize that this is temporary, because when the world returns to normalcy my goal is to keep as many of our dedicated colleagues as possible,” said Schram.

Norwegian’s route network changes

-Thousands of flights have already been cancelled.

-As of March 21, the company will primarily fly a reduced scheduled domestically in Norway and between the Nordic capitals. Some European flights will be operated. All intercontinental are cancelled except flights between Scandinavia and Thailand (last flights at end of March).

-All flights that will be operating will be available for sale

-Limited schedule will remain in place until at least April 17 but will be reviewed on a regular basis in line with changes in travel restrictions and demand.

Norwegian will continue to share updates with its customers, the financial market and the media once new measures are implemented.

Detailed reduced schedule – starting March 25

Norway:

Oslo -Bergen/Stavanger/Trondheim: 4 daily departures

Oslo – Ålesund/Bodø/Evenes/Tromsø: 2 daily departures

Oslo -Alta/Kirkenes: 1 daily departure

OSL – Haugesund/Kristiansand/Molde: 1 daily departure

Oslo – Svalbard: 3 weekly depatures

Oslo -Stockholm/Copenhagen: 2 daily departures

Oslo – Helsinki: 4 weekly departures

Stavanger – Bergen: 1 daily departure

Bergen – Trondheim: 1 daily departure

Sweden:

Stockholm – Kiruna: 4 weekly departures

Stockholm – Luleå/Umeå: 2 weekly departures

Stockholm – Helsinki: 2 daily departures

Stockholm – Copenhagen: 2 daily departures

Stockholm – Oslo: 2 daily departures

Finland:

Helsinki – Kittilä: 6 weekly departures

Helsinki – Oulu: 1 daily departure

Helsinki – Rovaniemi: 1 daily departure

Helsinki – Oslo: 4 weekly departures

Denmark:

Copenhagen – Oslo: 2 daily departures