Airlines have lost around $1.7 billion after a week without revenue because of the chaos caused by Icelandic volcanic ash said in a report by the head of the International Air Transport Association or IATA Mr. Giovanni Bisignani. On Saturday and Sunday air transport lost $400 million per day calling an earlier estimate of 200 million US dollars per day.

The sector has also been left to pick up further costs like offering accommodation to the stranded customers, food and another mode of transport to get them home. We have seen a week with no income but that has not blocked the costs.

In Europe governments must take their responsibility and aids the air transport terming the firm losses of an act of God completely out of control of the airlines. However the situation was different from the result of the attacks on the US on September 11, 2001, when airlines were secured out by governments.

European air transport was gradually returning to normal on Wednesday after volcanic ash gliding from an eruption in Iceland provoked a shutdown last week that left millions of travellers stranded and hit the economy. The chief executive of Lufthansa, European major airlines by passenger numbers, said that the firm had no calculation on how much the stoppage had cost firm but that it was not marginal.

We dont need a bailout, we dont need an umbrella but as an industry we will have to make up our mind on whether we want state help or not said in a statement by Wolfgang Mayrhuber. Asked about how fast the sector would improve Mayrhuber said volcano will not change the wish and need to travel.