Empty planes: Omicron onslaught and travel restrictions hit Ryanair’s passenger number January 5, 2022 The number of passengers flown around Europe by budget airline Ryanair was down 7 per cent between November and December as travel restrictions were imposed amid the spread of the Omicron variant. The carrier said the number of passengers dropped to 9.5 million last month – the lowest since July and down from 10.2 million [...]
Desperate travel sector demands all international Covid testing requirements are scrapped immediately January 5, 2022 All testing requirements for international travellers should be abolished immediately, the travel industry said this morning. Manchester Airports Group (MAG) and Airlines UK said research they commissioned into travel restrictions found domestic, not international, restrictions would be the only way to reduce the spread of Omicron. Pre-departure and day two PCR testing were reintroduced in [...]
Brits have to pay for entry to the EU from this year: Cash and pre-authorisation needed for post-Brexit trips to Europe January 5, 2022 Brits will have to start paying €7 per person and pre-register their details in order to enter the European Union from this year. Reports had surfaced in various European media in recent weeks that access to all Schengen EU countries would come at a cost from 2022, and when approached by City A.M. this morning, [...]
Exclusive: Nearly 9m Brits face having to cancel or postpone US and European holidays December 30, 2021 Nearly nine million holidaymakers face potentially having to cancel or rearrange trips to the US or mainland Europe that they booked before the introduction of new travel restrictions, according to new research shared exclusively with City A.M. this morning. Nearly one in five adults, around 8.9m Brits, has booked trips to mainland Europe or the [...]
Mayday: Year from hell in aviation as empty flights crash-land by staggering 71 per cent from pre-pandemic levels December 29, 2021 Covid-related travel restrictions led to a 71 per cent reduction in the number of international flights to and from UK airports this year compared with pre-pandemic levels, new analysis shows. Aviation analytics firm Cirium said around 406,060 international flights served UK airports during 2021 up to December 22, compared with 1,399,170 in the pre-pandemic period [...]
South Africa demands compensation from UK for economic damage caused by Covid travel red list in response to Omicron variant December 27, 2021 South Africa is calling for compensation from the UK for the economic damage the country suffered after it was placed on Britain’s Covid travel red list in November. South Africa’s Department of International Relations is demanding compensation after the movement of people was severely restricted, saying Africa’s largest economy took a serious beating because of [...]
November crowned best month for aircraft orders despite Covid uncertainties December 27, 2021 November has registered the highest number of aircraft orders since 2014, despite ongoing industry concerns over the Omicron variant. Driven mainly by the Dubai Airshow, industry stakeholders have ordered 16 wide-body and 411 single-aisle, for a total of 427 planes. Deliveries also reported an increase, going up 30 per cent compared with October to 92 [...]
Lufthansa cancels record 33,000 flights after dramatic crash in demand December 24, 2021 German carrier is reportedly planning to slash around 33,000 flights as a result of the Covid-induced reduction in passenger demand this winter. According to the airline’s boss Carsten Spohr, Lufthansa was currently operating 60 per cent of its flights, as bookings for the mid-January to February period were hit the hardest, especially in the group’s [...]
Union Unite calls on government to deliver ‘urgent’ support to aviation December 22, 2021 The union Unite has called on the UK Government to deliver ‘urgent’ support to the aviation industry following Whitehall’s £1bn package for the hospitality sector. Unite has urged Chancellor Rishi Sunak to help the industry weather the uncertainty caused by the Omicron variant, “so that it can rebuild sustainably and with resilience.” “Since this crisis [...]
Flights to Canary Islands cancelled as volcano emits toxic gases December 15, 2021 Flights to the Canary Islands were still being cancelled this morning after toxic gasses from the volcano in La Palma were detected across the island. According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, 21 flights were cancelled to and from airports in the Spanish archipelago yesterday, with a further two cancelled today. To face the situation, yesterday [...]