Managing disruption in aviation 

Flights to and from Gatwick and Heathrow airports were disrupted recently amid air traffic control staff shortages and bad weather. Dozens of flights had already been cancelled due to staffing challenges at the air traffic controller NATS. There were also pointers to bad weather that had swept the UK and other parts of Europe as being also responsible.

The low cost carrier Easyjet was reported to be the worst-affected airline, with flights from Gatwick to Naples, Montpellier, Jersey, and Edinburgh among those cancelled. A spokesperson for BA was reported to have said: “We operate hundreds of flights every day without disruption, successfully getting tens of thousands of our customers to where they need to be.

“Along with other airlines, we’ve had to make some small adjustments to our schedule because of air traffic control restrictions caused by adverse weather.

“Whilst the vast majority of our customers will be unaffected, we apologise for any inconvenience caused and our teams are working hard to help get journeys back on track.”

Disruption and flight cancellation is not limited to Europe. It is part of the airport experience that needs to be professionally handled. In the above response by an affected airline, it was not just enough to make an apology but there was an indication that the passengers were not left alone to their fate.

While strikes are a regular occurrence in Europe, with employees withholding their labour to fight for better pay and conditions; also, walkouts are sometimes planned months ahead but others are announced last minute, as such it always pays to check before one travels. Disruptions are not limited to weather and strikes, but also this year there have been IT outages, resulting in many delayed and cancelled flights. 

While border force staff at Heathrow Airport were planning a walk out, workers  at Kenya’s main international airport ended a day-long strike during the week, a union official said, after they were assured by the government that a plan to lease the airport to an Indian Company would only proceed with the union’s approval.

Travel Anxiety Report 2024 by World Nomads has found that 40 percent of Brits have said delays to flights and cancellations are a major concern and cause them to worry when travelling internationally.

It said that over two-fifths (43 percent) of travelling Brits have already faced some sort of disruption to their flight plan in the past year. It concluded thus: “Our Travel Anxiety Report highlights that during delays, many travellers experience significant stress or might go as far as giving up a holiday altogether.”

Dealing with disruption will require aviation managers to continually update their knowledge and skills in dealing with people. Whether in uniform or not, anyone working in an airport should see the traveller as king. Empathy is very important. Dealing with passengers affected by flight delays and cancellations goes beyond sympathising with them. Employees should not wait for formal organisational training only to build and develop skills that would make them prepared at all times for disruptions.

Quick and informed decision making is important in times of disruption. This is where collaboration and partnership within the airport community is important. Mock exercises  carried out envisaging various scenarios will be invaluable when the real disruption occurs. 

The World Nomads report also found that when a flight has been disrupted, 25 percent of Brits admit they just stay at the gate and start to worry, whereas 22 percent say they will go and seek a place to sleep. The report further stated that 14 percent say that they feel lost and don’t know what to do with themselves, a small number of Brits (10 percent) use the time to be productive and try and catch up with all their work emails. And around 16 percent say they feel so frustrated that they consider abandoning their trip altogether.

This gives an insight into how to get into the shoes of the traveller in time of disruption and ensure that the travel experience stays positive. The airport community should work collaboratively to manage challenges arising from disruption by giving priority to proactive communication, transparency, flexible rebooking options, assistance for vulnerable passengers, empowerment of frontline staff, and post-disruption follow-up so that the passenger is not left with feelings that are unpalatable as part of the airport experience.

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