Since the start of the summer season, air transport has been going through a period of chaos that combines flight cancellations, strikes and long queues at checkpoints. While Brexit induces more demanding controls at the border with the United Kingdom, the sector is also suffering from a lack of employees, and from general tension linked to the health crisis.
As the New York Times reported in an article on July 12, the global chaos in air transport is explained by the fact that the number of passengers suddenly increased with the lifting of health restrictions. Although this is a return to normal, the system is struggling to adapt.
The United States is concerned about the tendency of passengers to no longer trust airlines, after numerous flight cancellations which have disrupted weddings, job interviews and holidays, which have sometimes fallen through at times. due to poor airline forecasts. Because of these shortcomings, Senator Bernie Sanders has even proposed fining airlines for particularly egregious cancellations and delays, including to reimburse passengers for canceled flights. According to him, it is sometimes clear in advance that the companies will not be able to provide personnel. Several of them have indeed laid off staff during the health crisis and have not planned to better prepare for the return of passengers.
The result of this chaos: social media is overwhelmed with claims that air travel isn’t what it used to be. Some passengers even complain of having had the worst flight experiences of their lives. For some British travellers, as The Guardian reports, traveling has become an obstacle course.
And if we are to believe FlightAware, a flight tracking company, the situation is not going to improve, especially for small companies which are struggling to recover their pre-crisis situation. While airlines want to hire 13,000 pilots this year, and as many in 2023, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby says it will take five years to overcome this staffing shortage.