The aviation regulator has intervened by writing to airports and airlines to voice concern over the impact of staff shortages on flight delays and cancellations on travel plans.
Voicing concern, the head of the Civil Aviation Authority set out an expectation that airports and airlines should collaborate to “manage resourcing challenges” to ensure disruption is “kept to a minimum”.
Airports have blamed recruitment issues and Covid-linked illness for the delays with some urging passengers too check in as early as three hours before departure.
Staff sickness has seen airlines including British Airways and easyJet ground dozens of flights ahead of the peak Easter weekend travel period, while long queues at Manchester airport led to a call for government action from the city’s mayor Andy Burnham.
Travel businesses are braced for multiple challenges over coming days, with agents describing the situation as “worrying”.
CAA chief executive Richard Moriarty said it was “very important” that airlines are setting their own schedules “on a basis that is deliverable given available staff (including contractors), and has resilience for staff sickness, including from Covid”.
He insisted: “Airlines need to be working particularly closely with their contractors, such as ground handlers, to have confidence that they have staffing in place to deliver your planned schedule.”
In his letter to airlines, Moriarty said: “As we emerge from the worst of the pandemic and consumers take advantage of the freedom to travel, instances of late notice cancellations and excessive delays at airports are not just distressing for affected consumers but have the potential to impact confidence levels across the industry, at just the point when passengers are returning to flying.”
He pointed out: “We appreciate that it is not always possible to anticipate all the challenges that may arise on any particular day, but where capacity constraints can be predicted in advance, we would expect co-operation between all parties to determine the best outcomes for consumers.”
Moriarty added: “Where capacity is unavoidably restricted, we expect this co-operative planning to identify problems sufficiently in advance so as to allow pre-emptive cancellations.
“At a minimum, we would like to see passengers given notice so that they do not travel to airports unnecessarily and are able to make alternative arrangements where possible and appropriate.”
Airlines were also reminded of their legal obligations “to provide passengers with information about their rights when flights are disrupted, to provide care and assistance during the disruption and to offer passengers a choice of refund or alternative travel arrangements at the earliest opportunity, including flights on other airlines, or a new flight at a later date at the passenger’s convenience”.
This also covers the right to claim compensation where the flight is cancelled with less than 14 days’ notice and passengers are not offered re-routing within the required timeframes.
“We expect this obligation would apply where you have cancelled the flight due to your own staffing issues,” Moriarty told carriers.
“Where the cancellation has been made at the request of the airport, depending on the particular circumstances, extraordinary circumstances may apply if you could not have avoided the cancellation even if you had taken all reasonable measures.
“Where such issues are ongoing, and cancellations are repeatedly being requested by airports, this could be a failure of planning and co-operation, which may have consequences for whether compensation is payable.”
He also said: “The last two years have been very challenging for the industry and the large fall in traffic volumes has led to many colleagues leaving the industry.
“We are aware that many of you are having to recruit large numbers of new colleagues to provide a good service to passengers as traffic volumes return this spring and summer.
“We know that you are working hard to recruit these new colleagues, but it is clear that this has not always happened sufficiently quickly to cope with the increased passenger travel in recent days.
“Given the consequences for passengers of cancelled and disrupted journeys, I encourage you to do all you can to ensure that you have the necessary level of appropriately trained and cleared staff resources in place.”
Trade body Airlines UK said it would not be commenting at this point.