Delays and cancellations of flights are becoming increasingly common at airports in Italy and abroad. According to Eurocontrol, an organisation that deals with air traffic control, there were around 8,000 hours delayalmost 30% more than last year. The Sera Corriere reports that between June 28 and 30 alone, half of all flights canceled worldwide occurred in Europe. Cirium, another company that monitors air traffic dynamics, calculated that over 8,000 flights were canceled at European airports in the same month. 45% more than in 2023This problem has grown and become increasingly important over the years, and it is, together with the Rise of low-cost airlineswhich have led to an increase in passenger and flight numbers, as well as delays and disruptions. However, the problem does not have a single cause: there are physiological but also – and more importantly – structural reasons that are more complex to understand and therefore even more difficult to mitigate.
Why are there so many flight cancellations in Europe?
Disturbances occur more frequently during Summertime because the number of flights on the most popular routes is deliberately increased to meet the needs of holidaymakers. As some routes are added at short notice, the individual terminals are struggling to structure arrivals and departures correctly: Consider that in June low-cost airlines at European airports almost 1,300 additional flights per day compared to the previous year. Weather conditions must also always be taken into account, as they can slow down departures or landings, with cascading effects on Air traffic. Climate changewhich in this sense have a noticeable impact on the weather and make some short-term events more extreme, will most likely contribute to the worsening of the situation. But that is not all: possible and occasional Breakdowns In addition, there are the failures of aircraft or infrastructure, the consequences of which often last for several days. The aviation sector was hit hardest by the enormous IT problem This happened in July of this year when a software update was linked to MicrosoftThe operating system caused malfunctions on many company devices worldwide. On this occasion More than 5,000 flights were cancelled in a single dayAn event of this kind caused such great difficulties for international airports and other airports – at a time when air traffic was already congested – that the consequences were felt long after the problem had been solved.
The shortage of airport staff
The main factor causing flight delays and cancellations is a long-standing problem that continues to systematically reduce the efficiency and operational capacity of airports: the chronic Lack of flight And Ground staff in the field of air traffic control. The number of people interested in this career is lower than necessary, and on average it takes three years to properly train these specialists – a schedule that does not correspond to the growing demand. The problem of staff shortages became particularly clear a few years ago when the numerous redundancies among ground and flight staff during the months of the pandemic ultimately led to enormous disruptions at many airports around the world. However, the problem is still current, so that last July some categories of airport staff hit at some of Italy’s main airports, including Milan Malpensa and Linate. Recently The Sera Corriere reported on the testimony of an industry insider (who remained anonymous) who described the organization and planning of flights by airlines as “Schizophrenic”A pilot who works in the low-cost sector and also anonymously Corrierestated that airlines “The compact aircraft are working at their limits, there are not enough crews and at the first problem (…) they have to resort to reserves or cancel flights.”
