MAY 2022AEROSPACEDEFENSEREVIEW.COM19CIO InsightsBy Baris Findik, CIO, Pegasus Airlines (IST: PGSUS)THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON AVIATION INDUSTRY AND THE PATH FORWARDBaris Findik is the Chief Information Office (CIO) for Pegasus Airlines and after joining in 2017, Baris has led the airline's digital transformation which launched in 2018. Prior to joining Pegasus Airlines, Baris Findik spent 13 years as part of the technology management team at Turkcell, Turkey's largest GSM operator, with his experience spanning IT Governance, Enterprise solutions, technology coordination of group companies, mobile payment systems and the R&D department.What are some of the major challenges and trends that have been impacting the aviation space lately?The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the whole world, breaking traditions and changing the ways of doing business. Aviation is one of the sectors most impacted by this situation. The aviation industry, which by its nature is exposed to crises, has experienced many crises of various scales in the past. However, never before had there been a period like this when flights we had to suspend flights completely for two months. The decreased desire to travel due to health concerns, and the travel restrictions introduced to combat the pandemic, have caused significant contractions in demand. Here it became essential to adapt to the new circumstances with new business habits and strategies. As with all industry stakeholders, we have shown tremendous effort during this challenging period and we continue to do so. The main challenge affecting the aviation industry, and indeed all industries, remains pandemic.What keeps you up at night when it comes to some of the major predicaments in the aviation space?In the aviation industry, almost all the systems we operate have to be up and running 24/7. This is our number one requirement for ensuring the smooth flow of our operations. Baris Findik
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