Why have flights been cancelled and will problem be fixed by summer?

Hundreds of flights to and from British airports were canceled last week, which was half term for most schools in England and Wales.

Are these the same problems passengers faced at Easter?

The underlying cause is still a lack of staff. Airlines and airports laid off thousands of employees when travel ground to a halt during Covid restrictions and some faced a battle to survive: now airlines are hunting for staff to crew planes and especially for "below wing" roles such as ground handling

Even if the queue decreased over the week, security is still stretched to the limit. Hundreds of new recruits join the industry each month to fight the chaotic scenes at airports around the country.

Are airlines selling more flights than they can manage?

The cost and disruption for them and their passengers mean they have no incentive to sell or cancel. There were between 1% and 5% of flights that were canceled last week. British Airways has pre-emptively canceled hundreds of flights until October in order to shore up resilience.

Has that worked?

Yes, more or less. It wasn't enough for easyjet. It decided to cancel 24 flights a day in May, but last week it added dozens more each day at the last minute.

What sort of reasons?

Air traffic control staff sickness, storms, and problems mushrooming at airports are some of the challenges EasyJet has faced. Crew can fly up to four flights a day. Knock-on issues such as sending crew over legally permitted operating hours are caused by disruption at one end.

Bad weather and air traffic control restrictions can push robustness to the limit. Airlines are having a hard time maintaining their reserve crews, which would normally cushion the impact.

How are they responding?

It has been more difficult than anticipated. Competition to find staff has increased as the labour market tightens. People who worked in security jobs have found better pay in other industries. Delays in the background checks for aviation employees have increased the dropout rate from recruits who can't wait.

Why didn’t they act sooner or keep staff on?

Grant Shapps said that the aviation sector was to blame for too many employees being laid off. While Shapps criticized aviation businesses for not recruiting soon enough, airlines and airports argue that the abolition of travel restrictions caught them off guard, and that it had been impossible to offer jobs before.

In countries like Germany and France, airlines and airports were able to keep more staff. The industry has not been generating income for two years, despite the government's claims.

Is Brexit to blame?

It's a possibility that airlines that used to hire from around the EU to work from bases here could have deployed crew around Europe with more flexibility. The Covid paperwork adds to the airport queue for Britons. It's true that other airports and businesses around the world have struggled with staff shortages.

Will it be fixed by summer?

It should at least be better if the industry can continue to recruit, train and check. EasyJet is keeping a close eye on events to avoid more last-minute cancellation.