British Airways is to cut another 10,300 flights over the next four months, the latest in the thousands of cancellations that have caused widespread disruption in aviation this summer.
The cuts to short-haul flights, between now and the end of October, take advantage of new government rules that allow airlines to hand back take-off and landing slots at busy airports without permanently losing them.
The decision came just a day after the airline said it would cut 1,500 flights from its schedules, and only weeks after it cut a further 10,000 flights as it attempted to shore up its flagging operations.
Overall, BA has now cut 13 per cent of its original summer schedule, about 30,000 flights.
“While taking further action is not where we wanted to be, it’s the right thing to do for our customers and our colleagues,” BA said on Wednesday.
“While most of our flights are unaffected and the majority of customers will get away as planned, we don’t underestimate the impact this will have and we’re doing everything we can to get their travel plans back on track.”
The news came after the carrier had hired a new chief operating officer in a management reshuffle.
René de Groot will join the airline from Dutch flag-carrier KLM in October, according to an internal email sent to BA staff by chief executive Sean Doyle.
De Groot, who held the same position at KLM after training as a pilot, will be charged with rebooting BA’s flagging operations following a testing summer with the flight cancellations and staff shortages.
KLM has faced its own operational problems this summer, exacerbated by a staffing crunch at its Amsterdam hub.
“René is very familiar with the issues that we’ve been grappling with. As KLM’s COO, he led the airline’s ops team through the Covid-19 crisis, winding down the schedule in 2020, followed by a bumpy recovery characterised by continuously changing conditions, health regulations and travel restrictions,” Doyle wrote in the email.
“I am confident that René will help us to rebuild our airline and become a better BA,” he added.
BA’s troubles are part of industry-wide staffing problems at airports among ground handlers and air traffic controllers, which has led to the cancellations and delays.
In addition, the airline faces the prospect of a strike by about half of its own Heathrow check-in staff later this summer, although unions Unite and GMB have not yet set a date for action.
BA’s new hire comes after Doyle unveiled a string of senior management changes in the spring, which included splitting the role of chief operating officer in two.
Incumbent Jason Mahoney moved to the position of chief technical officer, while de Groot will take responsibility for day-to-day operations.
Other airlines that have reshuffled management include easyJet. Peter Bellew, chief operating officer at the carrier, resigned this week following operational failures at the airline.
BA lost about 10,000 staff in 2020 as the business bled money during the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic, and has struggled to rehire quickly enough, despite beginning to recruit late last year.
Stay connected with us on social media platform for instant update click here to join our Twitter, & Facebook
We are now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@TechiUpdate) and stay updated with the latest Technology headlines.
For all the latest Business News Click Here