Airline Travel as Covid is seen as winding down.

[Guest1]

Two of Europe's biggest airlines stop selling their cheapest tickets to reduce demand for flights

Jyoti Mann 

29 minutes ago

 

Lufthansa Airlines restricted sales of low-cost tickets this week.  Getty Images

• Lufthansa and Air France-KLM limited sales of their cheapest tickets to reduce travel chaos.
• The European airlines are also cutting thousands of flights from their summer schedules.
• Airlines are having to find new ways to cope with the causes of the summer travel chaos.

Lufthansa and Air France-KLM, two of Europe's biggest airlines, have restricted the sale of cheaper tickets to reduce demand as airlines continue to struggle with staffing and other issues, the Financial Times reported.

A lack of ground handling staff, high Covid sickness rates and general staff and supply shortages have been blamed for for the summer travel chaos. 

Lufthansa paused sales of its cheapest tickets for a few days this week so that passengers already affected by flight disruption could rebook, the newspaper reported. It lifted the limitations on Friday.

KLM was continuing to make prices for short-haul flights such as Amsterdam to London far more expensive than usual. A return ticket on that route was priced at almost $850 on Friday, according to the FT, up from a more typical $170.

"The whole airline industry is suffering. Not only airlines, airports, suppliers and air traffic control – the entire system is experiencing an unprecedented operational crisis, all over the world," Lufthansa chief executive, Jens Ritter, said in a LinkedIn post Friday.

The surge in demand from about 30% of pre-pandemic earlier in the year to 90% this summer was "impossible" and "overwhelming", Ritter said.

Lufthansa cut the number of flights it operated in Germany in July as a result in an attempt to stabilize demand.

"Lacking staff in ground handling, high sickness rates because of COVID, supply shortfalls, the tight airspace because of lack of staff or due to the war in Ukraine," Ritter said of factors disrupting its schedule. 

However, many have questioned why airlines in both the US and Europe that received government financial support and help to pay staff on furlough have not been better able to cope with the return of passenger demand. 

Lufthansa and Air France-KLM did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

[Specs]

Not that I'm criticizing but that's a heck of a convoluted way to hide the fact that they're just raising prices.

 

Edited July 11, 2022 by Specs

[Guest1]

California air charter firm diverts 5 Boeing jets with more than 1,000 American passengers on board because Dublin airport was understaffed

kduffy@insider.com (Kate Duffy) - 3h ago

Story Link: California air charter firm diverts 5 Boeing jets with more than 1,000 American passengers on board because Dublin airport was understaffed (msn.com)

 

[conehead]

18 hours ago, Specs said:

Not that I'm criticizing but that's a heck of a convoluted way to hide the fact that they're just raising prices.

 

 That's exactly what I thought!

[conehead]

52 minutes ago, Kargokings said:

California air charter firm diverts 5 Boeing jets with more than 1,000 American passengers on board because Dublin airport was understaffed

kduffy@insider.com (Kate Duffy) - 3h ago

Story Link: California air charter firm diverts 5 Boeing jets with more than 1,000 American passengers on board because Dublin airport was understaffed (msn.com)

 

1,000 less Americans in Ireland. Probably a good thing.

[Maverick]

London’s Heathrow Airport asks airlines to stop selling summer tickets

Jul. 12, 2022 10:16 AM ETInternational Consolidated Airlines Group S.A. (ICAGY)EJTTF, RYAAY, DLAKF, AFRAF, DRTGF, WZZAF, AERZY, FNNNF, NWARF, AIBEF, DLAKY, AFLYY, AAL, ACDVF, UAL, DAL, CGJTFBy: Kevin P. Curran, SA News Editor19 Comments

 

Carl Court/Getty Images News

 

London’s Heathrow Airport, the busiest airport in Europe prior to the pandemic, has asked airlines to discontinue summer sales as it struggles with staff shortages and delays.

 

A statement released on Tuesday explained that the airport cannot cope with surging passenger traffic that has regularly exceeded 100K per day with current staffing. Amid this rapid rise in travelers, service has fallen to “a level that is not acceptable” and safety has become a concern with many new hires struggling to keep up with the travel chaos.

 

“New colleagues are learning fast but are not yet up to full speed. However, there are some critical functions in the airport which are still significantly under-resourced, in particular ground handlers, who are contracted by airlines to provide check-in staff, load and unload bags and turnaround aircraft,” a statement from Heathrow CEO John Holland-Kaye explained. “They are doing the very best they can with the resources available and we are giving them as much support as possible, but this is a significant constraint to the airport's overall capacity.”

 

As such, the airport asked airlines for assistance in curbing the increasing passenger issues.

 

“Some airlines have taken significant action, but others have not, and we believe that further action is needed now to ensure passengers have a safe and reliable journey,” the statement read. “We have therefore made the difficult decision to introduce a capacity cap with effect from 12 July to 11 September.”

 

The new measures place a limit at 100K passengers per day, 4K below the current summer trend. Holland-Kaye advised that the airport is significantly upping its efforts to hire more staff, though he cautioned that this effort will take time.

London’s Heathrow Airport asks airlines to stop selling summer tickets (OTCMKTS:ICAGY) | Seeking Alpha

 

[Guest1]

Quote

Emirates refuses Heathrow's demand to cut flights

By Michael Race
Business reporter, BBC News

• IMAGE SOURCE,GETTY IMAGES

 

Emirates has rejected Heathrow Airport's demands for airlines to stop selling summer tickets, calling the move "unreasonable and unacceptable".

The airline accused the airport of having a "blatant disregard" for customers after it capped passenger numbers to 100,000 per day over summer.

Emirates said the airport now faced "an 'airmageddon' situation due to their incompetence and non-action".

Heathrow said it had no choice but to bring in a cap on departing travellers.

"For months we have asked airlines to help come up with a plan to solve their resourcing challenges, but no clear plans were forthcoming and with each passing day the problem got worse," the UK's largest airport said.

Emirates said it was given 36 hours to cut departing passenger numbers, and therefore flights, and was threatened with legal action for not complying.

 

"This is entirely unreasonable and unacceptable, and we reject these demands," it added.

In a statement heavily criticising Heathrow management, Emirates accused the airport of choosing "not to act, not to plan, not invest" and said its new cap on passengers appeared to have been "plucked from thin air".

"They wish to force Emirates to deny seats to tens of thousands of travellers who have paid for, and booked months ahead, their long-awaited package holidays or trips to see their loved ones," the airline said, citing that people were desperate to travel after two years of pandemic restrictions.

It added it planned to operate flights to and from the airport as scheduled.

• Don't expect great summer experience, warns airport boss
• The cap on passenger numbers at Heathrow Airport will be in place from now until 11 September. Before the pandemic, up to 125,000 people a day departed from the airport.

The BBC has seen a letter from the Civil Aviation Authority, which regulates airports, to Heathrow asking airport bosses to explain - by midday on Friday - why it has introduced a passenger cap and what it means for each terminal.

 

Thousands of UK travellers have been affected by disruption in recent weeks, with many having to deal with last-minute flight cancellations.

The UK is about to enter the key summer holiday season as schools begin to break up and there are concerns travellers will be hit by further disruption and delays to journeys.

Emirates is clearly furious. While airlines haven't always enjoyed a smooth relationship with Heathrow, arguing over charges for example, this is in a different league.

Accusing the airport operator of incompetence, blatant disregard for consumers, creating a mess that airlines and passengers have to sort out... it isn't pulling any punches here.

Emirates is in a difficult position. It relies on carrying large numbers of passengers in big planes from London to Dubai, where most of them fly on to other long-haul destinations. So every flight cut matters - and Emirates thinks it shouldn't have to cut them.

It isn't the only airline saying this sort of thing, either. Others have been very vocal behind the scenes as well.

 

Emirates claims Heathrow has threatened legal action if it doesn't comply with the demand to cut flights - but says it has no intention of doing so.

The gloves are off.

Airports and airlines, which cut jobs during the height of the coronavirus pandemic, have struggled to recruit staff as demand for international travel has returned.

But Emirates said its ground handling and catering staff were "fully ready and capable" of handling its scheduled flights, claiming the "crux of the issue lies with the central services and systems which are the responsibility of the airport operator".

"They are pushing the entire burden - of costs and the scramble to sort the mess - to airlines and travellers," its statement said. "All the signals of a strong travel rebound were there."

The airline said that as international travel had recovered over the past year, it had rehired and trained 1,000 pilots. The carrier also said it seen "regularly high seat loads" so "our operational requirements cannot be a surprise to the airport".

It said rebooking passengers was "impossible" with all of its flights at full capacity over the next few weeks, which included services at other London airports and on other airlines.

"Moving some of our passenger operations to other UK airports at such short notice is also not realistic," the airline said. "Ensuring ground readiness to handle and turnaround a widebody long-haul aircraft with 500 passengers onboard is not as simple as finding a parking spot at a mall."

IMAGE SOURCE,PA MEDIA

Heathrow said it had "tried to be as supportive as possible to airlines", saying its cap on passengers was higher than the 64,000 limit at Schiphol in Amsterdam.

"It would be disappointing if instead of working together, any airline would want to put profit ahead a safe and reliable passenger journey," it said in response to Emirates' criticism.

The airport said a problem causing disruption was a lack of airline ground handling teams which it claimed was "only resourced up to 70% capacity to serve passenger demand which has returned to 80-85% of pre-pandemic levels".

"There are not enough resources across teams. Until that gap is closed, we need to take some form of action to give people a better, more reliable experience and keep people safe," it added.

The Business Travel Association said the cap was an "outrage", and was a betrayal of all UK travellers.

British Airways said Heathrow's demand was "incredibly disappointing" for customers and came after it had already reduced its summer schedule.

BA is cutting an extra six flights a day in response to the move.

It has emailed some customers travelling on or before 25 July asking if they would like to change their flight or receive a voucher if they want to cancel.

More on this story

 

[Guest1]

Canada's random COVID testing returning for vaccinated air travellers

Canada's random COVID testing returns for vaccinated air travellers | CityNews Vancouver

[Guest1]

 

 

 

Notice is / was from July 14

 

 

 

NAV CANADA

 

@navcanada

 

One of NAV CANADA’s telecommunications service providers, Zayo, is currently experiencing an outage, which is impacting our Company’s operations in parts of Western Canada. Please see our full statement below.

 

[Guest1]

 

Quote

 

In Data: The Return Of The Airbus A380

BYJOANNA BAILEY

PUBLISHED 5 HOURS AGO

 

The A380 has staged a remarkable comeback...

 

 

In Data: The Return Of The Airbus A380 (simpleflying.com)

[Airband]

Airlines push back against incoming passenger refund requirements

Starting Sept. 8, airlines will have to refund or rebook passengers for delays and cancellations even when the issue is something outside of their control, like weather

Mon Aug 15, 2022 - National Post
by Ryan Tumilty

Quote

“These new regulations are in place at a time when something like 60 countries in the world have completely done away with pandemic restrictions. We still face them so that’s another concern.”

OTTAWA – Canada’s airlines say new rules forcing them to refund or rebook passengers, even when delays and cancellations are outside their control, are unfair, especially as the industry struggles.

The Liberal’s bill of rights for air travel came into force in 2019, requiring airlines to rebook or refund passengers when a flight is cancelled or excessively delayed because of circumstances an airline can control, like oversold flights.

But starting Sept. 8, airlines will have to refund or rebook passengers for delays and cancellations even when the issue isn’t in their control, for problems like weather. The rules will require them to rebook passengers on a new flight within 48 hours of the original flight or they must offer the passenger a full refund.

Jeff Morrison, president and CEO of the National Airlines Council of Canada, said that puts all of the pressure on airlines, at a time when they whole sector is facing challenges.

“Airlines will essentially be required to shoulder the entire burden of responsibility for flight disruptions, despite the fact that so many other partners and players are involved in the air travel experience,” he said.

Canadians taking to the skies this summer have faced ongoing pandemic restrictions, security delays and issues at customs as they return from abroad. Morrison said it’s not fair, while those problems still persist, that only airlines have to put money on the table.

WestJet spokesperson Madison Kruger echoed Morrison’s comments and said government agencies like the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority and the Canada Border Services Agency, as well as airports and other parts of the system, should all be involved.

“We are disappointed that airlines continue to be singled out as the only point of ownership and accountability for travel in Canada as this must be a shared responsibility by the entire ecosystem,” she said in an email. “Requiring airlines to be the sole provider of reimbursement for delays outside of the airline’s control creates an unbalanced system that does not reflect the responsibility that we collectively hold to the Canadian traveller.”

Morrison said the industry is also worried about ongoing pandemic restrictions, including the mandatory use of the ArriveCAN app. He suggested the new refund obligations should be delayed at least until the pandemic restrictions are no longer in place.

“These new regulations are in place at a time when something like 60 countries in the world have completely done away with pandemic restrictions. We still face them so that’s another concern.”

Morrison stressed airlines are doing everything they can to avoid delays and cancellations.

“We want to see them as a kind of last resort and ensure that everyone gets to where they need to go.”

Airlines can dispute possible refunds and even under the current rules passengers have complained that airlines have said issues like crew shortages are beyond their control. Passengers can appeal those denials to the Canadian Transportation Agency, which has recently warned airlines that they must provide clear evidence if they are claiming a crew shortage is beyond their control.

The new refund obligations were added to the rules following the COVID-19 pandemic when airlines cancelled hundreds of flights and offered few refunds until the government provided a massive financial aid package.

Data the government released on Thursday is showing improvement in the system. During the week of Aug. 1-7, 97 per cent of flights were not cancelled and 85 per cent of flights from the country’s largest airports left on time, up from 75 per cent in the first week of July.

During the height of delays, passengers returning from overseas were often held on the tarmac because Toronto Pearson’s customs hall was too full. That happened to 19 aircraft in the last week of July, compared to 373 in the last week of May.

Security screening is also improving with 88 per cent of passengers clearing that hurdle within 15 minutes.

Transport Minister Omar Alghabra was not available for an interview Friday, but his office released a statement and said airlines need to follow the rules, including the new refund obligations.

“Airlines need to follow the rules set out by the CTA because they have an obligation to ensure their operations respect the rights of passengers.”

[Falken]

Sounds like more fodder for The Aviation Herald esp when it comes to smaller/northern airlines!  

[boestar]

This is just the continuing story of the Liberals coming to the wrong conclusion and doing the wrong thing.  Seems to be a trend.

Well there is a Tornado so blame the airline.  Severe Thunderstorm at the destination...Blame the airline.  Someone was shot in Toronto blame legal gun owners.  I am sure there are a thousand more examples of their incompetence.

 

[Jaydee]

Restrictions had “more of an impact” on air industry than other factors: StatsCan

https://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2022/statcan/45-28-0001/CS45-28-1-2022-9-eng.pdf

A Statistics Canada report on the aviation sector says that government travel vaccine mandates and restrictions had “more of an impact” than other factors in handicapping the industry’s recovery. 

Department policy analyst and economist Valeriya Mordvinova explains how “travel restrictions and other measures imposed by governments to combat the pandemic” impacted the aviation sector in an Aug. 11 report titled Canadian aviation amid the COVID-19 pandemic: Part 3. International.

“In the first half of 2021, restrictions in Canada were some of the strictest, and its aviation’s recovery the slowest. Russia had the least strict restrictions among these countries for many months, and the recovery of aviation there was among the strongest. The United States had a gradual relaxation of restrictions and a steady increase in air passengers,” wrote 

The report explores domestic and international travel patterns of various countries including Canada, Australia, Brazil, China, Russia and the United States. When it comes to domestic travel, Canada “did not experience” as strong of a recovery as other countries. 

“Canada did not experience this to the same extent, as the number of passengers in the domestic sector remained well below 2019 levels in 2021. In 2020, the share of the domestic sector (56%) in Canada was slightly above that of 2019 (52%) before increasing to 70% in 2021,” wrote Mordvinova. 

In a statement emailed to True North, Alberta Institute President Peter McCaffrey said that the government’s devotion to restrictions has done “incalculable harm” to Canada. 

“We’ll likely see more and more of these types of reports released in the coming years, as we finally start to calculate some of the impacts of the restrictions, though we will never know the full extent of the costs,” said McCaffrey.

“Travel in general, and ArriveCAN specifically, are a clear example of how the federal government’s policies failed, and they also clearly demonstrate that the harms were not limited just to the economy, but also to Canadian’s civil liberties.”

Edited August 19, 2022 by Jaydee

[Falken]

I heard our glorious Minister of Transportation on the news today saying ArriveCAN is here to stay for now as it really speeds up movement thru the airports? 

[Jaydee]

The only thing Canadians need from government IS LESS OF IT !
 

Toronto's Pearson airport now 2nd worst in world for delays. Ottawa says travel woes on the mend

Transport minister blamed travel chaos on COVID-19 and labour shortage

 

Fatima Sherefa, 17, had a rough night at Toronto's Pearson Airport on Aug. 6. 

Her flight from Toronto home to Winnipeg had been delayed several times and then, just after midnight, it was cancelled. 

Sherefa says Air Canada staff didn't offer hotel accommodation for the night, and instead passed out yoga mats to stranded travellers.

Sherefa says she slept that night on one of the mats on the floor of a women's nursing room at the airport. 

"It was very terrifying, but also a new experience that I don't think anyone should have to go through," she said.  

Sherefa is just one of thousands of air passengers caught up in the travel chaos that has plagued Canada's major airports this summer. As COVID-19 restrictions were lifted in the spring, a sudden surge in travel led to mass delays and cancellations, and airport congestion. 
 

On Friday, Transport Minister Omar Alghabra told the House of Commons transport committee that COVID-19 and a labour shortage within the aviation industry are to blame and that, with the government's help, (OMG) the travel chaos is dissipating.

"We are seeing significant improvements over the last two months," he said. 

But the chaos is far from over. Toronto's Pearson airport, which had the most flight delays in the world for most of the summer, has only moved into second place, according to flight tracking service FlightAware. And, since May, more than 7,000 disgruntled travellers have flooded the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) with complaints related to flight disruptions.

The ongoing problems have raised questions about whether the government is doing enough to fix the problem, and if it should have done more before the chaos started. 

"The federal government needs to think about, why did this happen?" said Walid Hejazi, an associate professor of economic analysis and policy at the University of Toronto's Rotman School of Management.

"We're one of the richest countries in the world. It's completely unnecessary."

 

https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/delays-airport-government-1.6557310

Edited August 20, 2022 by Jaydee

[boestar]

ok what is everyones issue with ArriveCan other than the obvious Vaccination stuff.

It electronically does everything I need to do with pen and paper now.  It does make life easier aside from the nefarious bits.

 

[Maverick]

On 8/22/2022 at 12:26 PM, boestar said:

ok what is everyones issue with ArriveCan other than the obvious Vaccination stuff.

It electronically does everything I need to do with pen and paper now.  It does make life easier aside from the nefarious bits.

 

You kind of answered your own question there...

[boestar]

after examining the data I am not so worried.  The data is all stored on the device until you submit it to the CBSA.  No background operation.

[GDR]

It also means that you need an electronic devise and know how to use it to travel. 

Edited August 25, 2022 by GDR
it's also..not alos :)

[Airband]

Canada to make ArriveCan optional, drop COVID-19 vaccine requirement at the border by Sept. 30

Mask requirement for people on trains and planes will remain in place

Tue Sep 20, 2022 - The Globe and Mail
by Eric Adams, Robert Fife

The federal government plans to drop the COVID-19 vaccine requirement for people who enter Canada by the end of September, the same day it ends random testing of arrivals and makes optional the ArriveCan app, The Globe and Mail has learned.

The changes, for arrivals at land, air and sea ports of entry, are planned for Sept. 30, but have yet to be finalized by cabinet, according to four sources The Globe is not naming because they are not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.

The mask requirement for people on trains and planes will remain in place, at the direction of Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos, according to two of the sources.

The aviation and travel industries have been pushing the government to relax the rules that cover international travel, saying they discourage visitors and are out of step with many other countries as the pandemic eases.

The United States requires all entrants to be vaccinated, and it is not known if the requirement will be lifted at the same time as Canada’s.

The ArriveCan app is used for arriving passengers to submit their customs declarations, vaccine status, and travel plans. It has been criticized as cumbersome, and a contributor to the lineups and logjams that have been a feature of many Canadian airports over the past summer.

Nadine Ramadan, a manager in Transport Minister Omar Alghabra’s office, declined to comment and referred questions to Marco Mendicino, Minister of Public Safety. His office did not immediately respond to an e-mail.

John Gradek, a former Air Canada executive who teaches aviation leadership at McGill University, said he has heard from discussions with industry members who have told him passengers will still have the option of submitting their travel plans, customs declarations and their information using the app, or stand in a line to do so.

On June 20, the government suspended vaccine requirements for domestic and outbound travelers, federal government employees and federally regulated industry workers. The government cited declining COVID-19 cases and the fact that 32 million people, or 90 per cent of eligible Canadians, had been inoculated.