Brits booking summer holidays warned they could face further travel chaos

Aviation data firm Cirium said 291 departures from major UK airports have been cancelled between May 25 and Tuesday, with many flights to and from Manchester, Gatwick, Bristol and Birmingham impacted

Issues with the airline industry including huge queues and cancelled flights could persist deep into the summer, it has been predicted.

This half-term so far has been, without doubt, the worst the aviation industry has suffered in many years.

Staff shortages and surges of holidaymakers are some of the reasons why airports are struggling, while airlines such as TUI and easyJet have had to fork out huge amounts to put customers up in hotels after cancelling flights or rebooking them onto alternative flights.

Aviation data firm Cirium said 291 departures from major UK airports have been cancelled between May 25 and Tuesday, with many flights to and from Manchester, Gatwick, Bristol and Birmingham impacted.

Unfortunately for those eager to get away this summer, things are unlikely to clear up anytime soon.

Garry Graham, deputy general secretary of the Prospect union, has warned that “staff shortages across the industry” are likely to ensure that disruptions to travel “could get worse this summer before they get better.”

Over the pandemic many airport workers quit the industry after long periods of being furloughed.

An unknown number have stayed away since planes returned to the air in number, in no small part due to the challenging work environments in positions such as baggage handling.

Many airlines and airports repeatedly called for more financial support due to the collapse in demand for travel caused by the Covid-19 crisis.

They are now struggling to recruit new workers and complete security checks for those who have joined.

“We have more vacancies than we have candidates,” Kully Sandhu from the Aviation Recruitment Network, said.

Would-be passengers are reporting that they’ve been warned flights booked for the middle of summer may not go ahead without a hitch.

One dad told The Sun he booked a trip to Crete for late July and was warned of possible issues by TUI.

He said: “This will send a shudder down every parent’s spine.

“Millions of families are desperate for some sunshine. But this admission that they can’t guarantee our flights in late July shows this isn’t just a problem for this half-term.”

Around two million people are set to fly over the Jubilee bank holiday weekend, making it the busiest period at UK airports since before the pandemic.

Whether already beleaguered workers are able to deal with the pressure remains to be seen.