Before the dramatic events of 2020, Spain’s Teruel Airport handled the usual storage and scrappage of aircraft. However, with the aviation industry facing its biggest-ever challenge from the COVID-19 pandemic, unwanted airliners have been arriving for disposal at the site on an unprecedented scale, as Javier Rodríguez shows
The onset of the coronavirus pandemic has put an increased strain on storage/scrappage facilities around the world as operators look to park or phase out airliners while passenger demand remains at rock bottom as people remain weary of catching the bug along with global restrictions on international travel
Flag carriers such as KLM Royal Dutch Airlines brought forward the retirement of the Boeing 747 in response to COVID-19. Here, the 1991-vintage PH-BFI (c/n 25086) ‘City of Jakarta’ is photographed in the early stages of parting out. By October 2020, the jumbo had been completely torn down