Essential workers in the oil, gas and energy sectors may continue to be affected by airport and airline disruption until the end of the year, a business travel specialist has warned.
Munro’s Travel reported “untold problems” for clients in the face of airport capacity caps and strikes.
The Aberdeen-based TMC projected that the ongoing travel challenges would last beyond the summer holiday period and into final quarter of 2022.
Managing director Murray Burnett said: “The travel challenges, which are being caused currently by capacity issues and schedule disruptions across the UK and Europe, are not only being experienced by summer holidaymakers.
“Essential workers in the oil, energy sector, who need to arrive at their destination for crew changes, are also experiencing complications.
“We are receiving messages daily from our key airline partners emphasising the urgency for our clients to forward book essential worker rotational travel earlier than usual in order to plan for continuing capacity restrictions on major crew change flows and associated travel sooner than usual for the September to December period.”
He added: “These capacity issues come on the back of an immensely difficult period for the oil, gas and energy sector during Covid when crew changes were complex and often costly – with arranging charter transport, time spent on visa issues, flights via multiple ports and down time when crew changes were not completed.
“The airlines may want clients to plan crew changes for the remainder of the year now. But it’s just not that simple. It’s causing untold problems for travellers, however, our team is working tirelessly to support our clients throughout this very difficult period bearing in mind that there are capacity caps in place at many international airports limiting passenger numbers.
“As travel continues to get back on its feet after Covid and essential workers in the oil, gas and energy sectors are facing delays, diversions and cancellations, it’s more important than ever that employers maintain their duty of care to all staff.
“The role of passenger tracking tools comes into its own at a time like this when companies need to know the current location of individual members of their teams both to check on their safety and how they can re route them to their destination using alternative flights.”
Burnett also cited issues with rail strikes which have left essential workers unable to travel from home to their departure airport.
And the travel disruption is widespread around the world.
“Just yesterday (Tuesday) ground crew and baggage handlers are threatening strike action at major Australian airports and a strike will ground all Lufthansa flights from Germany,” Burnett pointed out.
“Take for example, a long-haul passenger who has a flight leaving on Tuesday but landing in Germany today (Wednesday) for a connecting flight. They will find that their first flight was cancelled even though the strike had not yet commenced.
“Thirty two flights from Frankfurt yesterday have already been cancelled with a further 646 flights today. Munich faces a further 200 today. Lufthansa is already warning of the effects of the strike lasting all this week.”