Long waiting times: Immediate measures should relieve the airports

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Travel Airport chaos

These immediate measures are intended to relieve the airports

Anyone who flies on vacation in the summer has to be prepared for a long wait. Airports and airlines lack employees. But there are measures that are intended to alleviate the shortage in the short term.

“There are massive problems at the airports”

Chaos threatens at German airports. The industry is suffering from a massive shortage of staff. “The desire to travel has come back much more than the airlines could have dreamed of,” says Daniel Koop. “Many employees have left or were left,” said the WELT reporter.

ZFirst of all, the omicron wave before Easter caused high levels of sickness among airlines and airports. Now the aviation industry is faced with unexpectedly high demand and still a lack of staff. Because at the beginning of the pandemic, employees were laid off en masse in the face of the standstill. They have migrated to other trades and are not coming back.

The airport association ADV assumes that there will be an estimated 20 percent fewer ground staff than before Corona. The airport works councils are even talking about 5,500 missing employees. This means that it is becoming increasingly difficult for airports to ensure ground services such as security checks, baggage handling and aircraft handling.

There will still be a staff shortage in the summer. In order to prevent thousands of flights being canceled or airports no longer being served due to overcrowding, as was the case at Pentecost, the industry is resorting to imaginative methods to limit the consequences of the staff shortage immediately.

Fewer rows of seats

According to the BBC, easyjet plans to remove the last row of seats from its Airbus A319 fleet, thereby limiting the number of seats to 150.

With the reduction in seats, the airline is also allowed to reduce the number of crew members. Because according to the British aviation authority, the size of the crew depends on the number of seats and not on the actual occupancy.

Fewer passengers means fewer staff. Easyjet should think about it

Quelle: picture alliance / AA

Only with hand luggage on board

In order to avoid long queues in front of the check-in counters and baggage drop-off machines, the British trade union GMB advises only traveling with hand luggage.

The calculation is quite simple: This not only relieves employees when checking in and checking in the baggage, but also everyone who handles the baggage, i.e. security inspectors, packers, drivers and stevedores.

On the other hand, those who only fly with hand luggage can already check in online and do not have to use any other ground services at the airport apart from the security check.

Are so many suitcases... If you only travel with hand luggage, there are few staff at the airport

Are so many suitcases… If you only travel with hand luggage, there are few staff at the airport

Quelle: picture alliance/dpa

Temporary workers from Turkey

If there is a lack of skilled workers in your own country, it makes sense to look elsewhere. This is legal, albeit questionable. The airport association ADV, for example, supports an idea that 2,000 Turkish temporary workers at German airports should temporarily close the staffing gap. The corresponding proposal has been submitted to the Federal Ministry of Labour.

The flight portal aero.de reports that there is a provider from Istanbul who can supply the required specialists in bulk. They not only speak rudimentary German, but also have confirmed certificates for dangerous goods training that meet the requirements of the International Air Transport Association IATA.

However, the Department of Labor needs help. As a rule, every airport worker has to undergo a thorough individual examination for safety reasons. Of course, one would gladly do without such a time expenditure.

Additional security personnel could come from abroad

Additional security personnel could come from abroad

Quelle: picture alliance/dpa

Passenger selection at the airport

Most of us have probably only known what triage means since Corona. In view of the fact that around 1,000 passengers missed their flights at Dublin Airport on the last weekend in May due to the rush, the airport management is now resorting to rigorous selection measures in order to equalize the crowds in the terminals. It is called inappropriately, but with audience appeal, “triage”.

At peak times, passengers will only be allowed access to their departure lounge if their flight is about to take off – within the next two and a half hours for short-haul routes and three hours for long-haul routes. The rest of the travelers have to wait in front of the airport. Of course, this does not apply to people with special needs.

Dense crowds, here in Amsterdam.  To avoid this, passengers should only be allowed into the terminal shortly before departure

Dense crowds, here in Amsterdam. To avoid this, passengers should only be allowed into the terminal shortly before departure

Quelle: picture alliance/dpa/ANP

Soldiers as security controllers

As always, Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary has an idea that is publicly divided. He told the Guardian that for the next three to four months the government should bring the military into airports to take care of controls.

“Army and defense personnel are good at creating security and could relieve the airports,” he told the newspaper. “That would be something useful that this government could do instead of always blaming the airports and airlines.” Because the latter doesn’t solve any problems.

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