British Airways Cuts Hundreds of Flights Due to Staff Shortages
If you have travel plans with British Airways this summer, you could be in for a major headache. The airline has axed hundreds of flights through September, raising fears that other companies could follow suit.
The airline slashed thousands of jobs during the pandemic. Now it faces staff shortages as restrictions are lifted around the world and travel demand has picked up.
British Airways has cut flights on some routes to the US and the Far East, affecting thousands of travelers. Flights to Miami, Hong Kong and Tokyo this summer have been cancelled, raising fears of a domino effect with more companies set to follow.
From June 4th to September 7th, flights from Heathrow to Miami will be reduced from two to one a day, while Hong Kong has been removed as a destination from the flight log due to ongoing entry restrictions caused by Covid, I News reports. BA said the cancelled daily flight to and from Miami would be picked up by American Airlines.
It is not yet clear how many other flights will be axed over the summer by British Airways. Passengers who have their flight cancelled are entitled to a full cash refund or the airline should book them on another flight with a take-off time as close to the cancelled flight as possible. In an email to customers the airline apologized and said they’ll do everything they can to get passengers where they need to be.
BA had already cancelled more than 1,000 flights earlier this month. Some of the affected routes include London to Berlin, Dublin, Geneva, Paris, Stockholm, Athens and Prague. The flagship carrier also axed more than 200 flights last week, affecting an estimated 20,000 passengers.
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I recently chatted with a BA pilot who confirmed this. He also said that more cuts are to come… Very frustrating, especially given that most international travel is (at least theoretically) now possible again.