AUA parent company Lufthansa and its subsidiary Eurowings are canceling their flight schedule in the July holiday month due to a lack of staff both internally and among airport service providers and ground staff. Before July, Lufthansa removed 900 flights within Germany and Europe from its hubs in Frankfurt and Munich. The airline announced this on request on Wednesday.
The cancellations affect the weekdays Friday, Saturday and Sunday, which corresponds to five percent of the planned capacity over the weekend. Eurowings is also canceling several hundred flights to stabilize the offer for the month of July.
Aviation industry lacks staff
The entire aviation industry, especially in Europe, is currently struggling with bottlenecks and staff shortages – from passenger control to aircraft handling and flight attendants. There is a shortage of employees who have looked for other work during the corona pandemic.
Lufthansa and Eurowings have taken numerous measures to ensure the greatest possible stability of the flight schedule, Lufthansa emphasizes. “However, it is foreseeable that due to the bottlenecks, flight schedules cannot be flown as hoped.” Passengers would be notified immediately of cancellations and, if possible, rebooked on other Lufthansa or Eurowings flights. Alternatively, passengers in Germany can travel to the airports by train.
The airline asked passengers to be at the airport on time during the upcoming holidays and if possible to check in and check in online the night before. Hand luggage should be limited to the essentials to avoid long waiting times at security checkpoints.
Worrying about chaos during peak travel season
After flight cancellations at major European airlines over the Whitsun weekend due to staff shortages, concerns about the chaotic conditions during the peak season had increased. Following departures and layoffs during the pandemic, the industry still does not have enough employees and is operational to handle the rush of travel.
“Across all locations, the service providers involved in passenger handling are missing about 20 percent of ground staff compared to the pre-Corona period. This can lead to bottlenecks at peak times, especially at check-in, when loading suitcases and at the aviation security checkpoint,” said Ralph Beisel, general manager of the airport association ADV.
Source: Krone
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
