Government in the UK puts pressure on airlines

The country officials and the aviation regulator asked air carriers to adjust their summer timetables in such manner that the companies can make sure flights will be available for passengers, in an attempt to avoid a rerun of the chaos created in May, affecting ten of thousands of holidaymakers in the country.

 

During the last month, companies such as British Airways, TUI and Easyjet were severely affected by staff shortages combined with an increasing post-pandemic travel demand from customers.

The authorities even recommended that earlier cancellations were preferable instead of last minute changes in operation schedules.

The Department for Transport and the Civil Aviation Authority said in a letter addressed to the aviation sector:

"We think it's important that each airline reviews afresh its plans for the remainder of the summer season until the end of September to develop a schedule that is deliverable.

"Your schedules must be based on the resources you and your contractors expect to have available, and should be resilient for the unplanned and inevitable operational challenges that you will face.

"While cancellations at any time are a regrettable inconvenience to passengers, it is our view that cancellations at the earliest possibility to deliver a more robust schedule are better for consumers than late notice on-the-day cancellations."

Moreover, the Authority stated that customers must be kept informed at all times, as airlines should have "sufficiently staffed call centres and user-friendly digital channels" to maintain fluency of operations, as well as encouraged a closer collaboration between the commercial transport companies, ground handlers, air traffic controllers and border workers.

On the other hand, unions think that the problems will continue to persist during this summer, as companies face considerable delays due to new staff’s lack of experience, while the UK government refuses to help and hire more experienced workers from the EU.

 

Source: bbc.com