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BRITISH Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has asked airlines not to sell tickets if they themselves are unable to meet the surge in demand. The statement came following a number of flight cancellations that caused disruption for travelers who wanted to travel.
European airports have struggled to cope with the post-pandemic surge in demand, but UK airports are facing a tough week with school holidays and long weekends celebrating 70 years of Queen Elizabeth’s reign.
Similar queues were seen at airports during the Easter holidays earlier in the year and Shapps said that despite a number of steps being taken, no progress had been seen.
“We have to make sure what happened in the last few days doesn’t happen again. Despite warnings from the government, airlines are selling more tickets and trips than they can capacity to do so,” said Shapps, who added he would meet with industry officials to discuss the matter.
“This must not happen again and all efforts must be made so that something similar does not happen again in the summer.”
Airlines are expecting more passengers to travel after two years of travel restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, they had difficulty recruiting staff after being affected by the pandemic, and complained that the recruitment process and security checks for new employees took longer.
Shapps said the government had helped the industry by changing regulations to speed up staff recruitment and added that the government “had done its part.”
However, the chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Transportation, Huw Merriman, said the government had instead directed airlines to operate flights by saying they had to use the 70 percent flight quota or they would lose it.
Merriman said that the language Shapps used did not improve things. I think this is disappointing because the government seems to be blaming the industry. This is an industry that has lost billions.
“Airlines had been waiting for clarity on the changing regulations. We need to find solutions between government and industry to help industry survive,” Merriman concluded. [antaranews/photo special]
