BRITISH no-frills airline EasyJet today said it was reducing the number of its flights this summer, as the UK aviation sector struggles with severe staff shortages.

Airlines and airports are struggling to recruit staff after the lifting of pandemic lockdowns, which saw the aviation sector slash thousands of posts.

London’s Gatwick airport last week said it would reduce summer flights owing to limited resources.

EasyJet today said it “is proactively consolidating a number of flights across affected airports”, including Gatwick.

The carrier added that it was seeking to “build additional resilience” also amid delays to air traffic control and passport checks.

Despite the travel chaos, EasyJet stressed its bookings remained “strong” for the peak-demand summer months of July and August.

Staff shortages across the aviation sector have sparked flight delays and cancellations in recent weeks.

“We are sorry that for some customers we have not been able to deliver the service they have come to expect from us,” said EasyJet chief executive Johan Lundgren.

EasyJet said it expects the airline’s capacity in the group’s current third quarter to be 87% of the pre-pandemic 2019 level.

It is expected to increase to 90% in the three months to the end of September, EasyJet’s final quarter.

Air passenger traffic on a global scale is expected to hit 83% of pre-pandemic levels this year and the aviation industry’s return to profit is “within reach” in 2023, the International Air Transport Association said today.

Adding to air travel disruptions in Britain, the country’s rail sector faces its biggest strike action in more than three decades this week, in a row over pay as soaring inflation erodes earnings. – AFP, June 20, 2022.