If you want to fly on holiday by plane this summer, you need strong nerves. Airports across Europe are struggling with staff shortages while travel is booming. In Austria, Vienna Airport and Austrian Airlines are well prepared for the busiest months of the year. Nevertheless, delays and flight cancellations can also occur in Vienna, especially as problems at other airports are moved to other destinations.
Several flights of the Lufthansa subsidiary Eurowings were canceled at Salzburg airport last weekend. As a result, up to 500 people had to stay on the ground on Sunday morning.
“In Vienna, we and our partners have succeeded in retaining as many employees as possible, especially through the short-time working instrument, who are now fully deployed again. But that is not the case at many other airports that we also serve,” said AUA spokeswoman Sophie Matkovits at APA’s request.
“We have prepared ourselves as well as possible”
AUA will return to action with all its aircraft in the summer. “Together with our partners at the Vienna location, we have prepared ourselves as best we can for midsummer and the holidays and have also hired more than 150 new flight attendants,” said the spokeswoman. From the current perspective, stable flight operations are possible, but the airlines are not solely responsible for smooth flight operations. The cooperation of all partners at home and abroad is necessary.
Vienna Airport also emphasized that it was well positioned for the summer. “With a workforce of 80 percent compared to the pre-Corona year 2019, the airport can cover the current and expected passenger volume well,” said airport spokesman Peter Kleemann. The number of passengers is currently around 70 percent of pre-crisis levels and will not reach the record levels of 2019 despite the peak season.
“Permanent hiring on a continuous basis”
At Vienna Airport, the entire team – about 5,000 employees – has returned from short-time work since April. “Vienna Airport is also constantly hiring new staff, especially in the areas of security, passenger and ground handling,” says Kleemann.
Vienna Airport has no influence on the situation at other airport locations. Even the travelers themselves could do little to avoid problems. Vienna Airport recommends checking flight status and allowing more time than usual for departure on busy travel days, as Kleemann said.
The union view is less optimistic. “We get through the summer months, if at all, only with a lot of noise,” union official Daniel Liebhart recently stated.
Amsterdam narrowly avoided collapse
The first taste of the summer season came during the Dutch spring break at the end of April, when Amsterdam Airport narrowly escaped collapse. Dozens of flights had to be cancelled, long queues formed in front of the terminal buildings and the fire service distributed water to those waiting.
The reason for the problems is the corona pandemic. In the two years of the crisis, airports and airlines have cut staff who are now missing, while bookings and passenger numbers are skyrocketing.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
