The aviation industry in the UK is going through a pretty chaotic time. Over the past few weeks, there have been a ton of cancelled flights, massive delays at baggage reclaim and seemingly endless queues at passport checks across the country.
But you want to know the worst thing? It seems the chaos could spill over into summer and possibly even next year. The latest batch of cancellations has come from British Airways, which has scrapped more than 100 flights between now and September. Like other airlines, the operator has cited ongoing staff shortages, caused by higher-than-usual levels of employee sickness due to rising Covid-19 rates in Europe, plus difficulty in hiring new workers to replace those lost during mass lay-offs last year.
The routes affected by the latest series of cancellations are from the UK to Miami, Hong Kong and Tokyo. Miami services have been slashed by half (though American Airlines has promised to replace any cancelled flights), but all trips to Tokyo and Hong Kong remain suspended indefinitely. And it’s left holidaymakers worried that even more popular destinations might be cancelled throughout the summer.
BA has said it will provide vouchers for new flights, with passengers only entitled to cash compensation if the cancellation is due to staff sickness or if it was announced less than two weeks in advance. Our advice? Keep an eye out for further cancellations, right up until your date of travel.
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