When the previous edition of this book was published, the commercial airline industry was in the middle of the deepest crisis it had ever faced. The Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent severe travel restrictions that had been introduced by governments to attempt to limit the spread of the virus yielded a drastic reduction in passenger air travel volume across the world. According to IATA, 2020 passenger volume was around one third of that in 2019, and a recovery to the level of the last full pre-pandemic year was not expected until 2024. The increase in air cargo business had not for most airlines been enough to offset the revenues lost due to the drastic fall in passenger operations. The industry was kept afloat thanks to approximately $250 billion of government support (representing about 30 per cent of the industry's global revenue in 2019).

Some experts and commentators suggested at the time that the pandemic would change the airline industry “forever”. I was more inclined to subscribe to the view that most of the effects of this disruption would dissipate within the next decade. At the beginning of 2025, passenger volume has fully recovered to the pre-pandemic level, and the global industry revenue is expected to reach $1 trillion for the first time ever (adjusted for inflation, 2025 airline industry revenue will be about the same as it was in 2019). The pandemic did however impact the aviation sector – delays in aircraft manufacturing continue, and we have yet to fully recover from the workforce disruption caused by the pandemic.