EasyJet cancels 1,700 flights for the summer. As explained by the British company, the compression of the airspace over the skies of Europe, due to the war in Ukraine, has created a sort of bottleneck, narrowing the available corridors.
EasyJet cancels thousands of flights
At the moment, those who intended to leave and arrive at London Gatwick will experience the greatest inconvenience. EasyJet said “the whole industry is experiencing difficult conditions this summer, with more limited airspace due to the war in Ukraine and potential new strikes” by air traffic controllers. That’s why “some proactive adjustments were made to our schedule”.
Even in Italy, 8% fewer Easyjet flights will fly with daily cuts, as was announced by the same company to Corriere della Sera and “the example” will also be followed in the coming weeks by other European carriers. In the specific case, however, almost 200,000 passengers have already seen the ticket they had initially purchased with the British company canceled and rescheduled on other flights. “95% were rescheduled to alternative flights. The remaining 5% were offered a refund”.
The motivations
These are not cancellations due to staff shortages but due to the restriction of European airspace due to the conflict in Ukraine. For this reason, the planes are forced to take different routes, creating a supernumerary of planes which transit, at the same time, over the areas intended for them but which, for obvious safety reasons, cannot engulf the same air spaces too much. EasyJet explained to the Corriere that it has “more flight attendants and pilots than ever” and that the inconveniences have been diluted on routes with more daily flights so as to allow for correct rescheduling for customers.
