British Airways has stopped selling tickets for short-haul flights out of London Heathrow Airport.
Domestic and European routes will be affected by the move. As the aviation industry struggles to meet a surge in demand, it stands to cause more disruptions.
Due to the restrictions imposed on us and the ongoing challenges facing the entire aviation industry, British Airways decided to limit the available fares on some services.
Three weeks ago, Heathrow asked airlines to stop selling tickets and limited the number of passengers who could fly out of the facility. It has a cap of 100,000 passengers per day.
The chief of staff and carbon at the airport defended its operations after airlines criticized it for the passenger caps. He said the airport has increased security capacity in order to prepare for the peak travel season in Summer.
"Over the last few months, anyone who has traveled anywhere will have seen that aviation is struggling to cope with the wave of summer demand we're now seeing after two years of COVID cancellation," he said.
The shortage of ground-handling staff resulted from airlines not investing in the basics. Airlines usually contract ground handling companies.
He wrote that airlines have driven down costs over the years and that this was one of the first costs they slashed during the Pandemic. For months ground handling companies have been trying to recruit and train skilled workers, but if their airline customers aren't willing to pay market rates, then they aren't able to fill the posts.
There were flight disruptions and lost bags this summer. Staff shortages, absences, and bad weather are some of the issues airlines face.
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