Tui has detailed long flight delays and cancellations over the weekend due to “significant operations disruptions”.
EasyJet also reportedly cut about 240 flights from Gatwick over ten days between May 28 until June 6 – including half-term for many schools and the Platinum Jubilee long weekend – due to issues affecting operations.
The weekend disruption followed a series of lengthy Tui flight delays last week and 200 EasyJet flights being cancelled on Thursday due to an IT systems failure.
Two Tui Airways flights to and from Manchester airport to Antalya involved overnight delays on Sunday.
A departure from Manchester to the Turkish destination was put back from 4.55pm yesterday afternoon until 6.30am this morning (Monday).
The company also listed delays to Manchester flights on Sunday to and from Heraklion, Sal and Almeria and a delay of more than eight hours of flights from Gatwick to Kos and Doncaster Sheffield to Palma.
A Dublin to Reus service due to depart at 4.45am on Sunday was re-scheduled to leave at 9.15pm.
Tui also listed ten flights cancelled on Saturday and one on Sunday. The affected flights on Saturday included two from Bristol airport and others from Birmingham, Gatwick, Manchester, Stansted, Cardiff, Glasgow and Cork plus a Bristol-Sharm el Sheikh flight on Sunday.
The company said: “At Tui Airways we pride ourselves on our on-time performance. In the unlikely event that your flight is delayed, please rest assured that we are doing everything we can to get you on your way as quickly as possible.
“Recently, due to a combination of factors causing significant operations disruptions, we made the difficult decision to cancel some of our flights.
“If you are affected by a flight cancellation and were travelling on a Tui package holiday, this means your whole holiday is impacted and thus cancelled.
“Please accept our sincere apologies for the inconvenience and the disappointment that this decision has caused. Please be assured that we have not taken this decision lightly.
“In accordance with EU Regulations, you are entitled to compensation payable per person. A claim can be made 72 hours after you were due to depart.”
Tui added: “It is exceptionally rare that we must cancel a flight and your holiday in this way so we are extending our apology by offering a £200 holiday voucher per person and hotel that you will choose to travel with us again in the future. You should receive this voucher within 28 days.
“We will also be refund – in full – the total cost of your booking within 14 days.”
Meanwhile, an EasyJet spokesperson said on Friday: “We have taken the decision to make advance cancellations of around 24 Gatwick flights per day starting from tomorrow 28 May until 6 June.
“We are very sorry for the late notice of some of these cancellations and inconvenience caused for customers booked on these flights however we believe this is necessary to provide reliable services over this busy period.
“Customers are being informed from today and provided with the option to rebook their flight or receive a refund and can apply for compensation in line with regulations.”
Responding to the EasyJet cancellations, Which? Travel editor Rory Boland said: “Yet more flight cancellations will cause huge disruption and distress to those who have paid significant amounts of money to get away this half-term.
“EasyJet must offer passengers the option of a refund or to rebook them on any reasonable route as quickly as possible – even if that means using other carriers.”
He added: ”This raft of cancellations is not an isolated event, and Which? has heard from passengers who complain the airline is disregarding their consumer rights, as well as not communicating effectively to those stuck abroad and don’t know when they might be able to get home.
“Passengers need an aviation regulator with proper enforcement powers to uphold their rights, and the Civil Aviation Authority must be given the ability to issue direct fines on airlines who disregard consumer law.”