Over 130,000 Passengers Affected by Lufthansa’s Flight Cancellations
Lufthansa Group announced earlier this week that it had to cancel over 1,000 flights due to strike action.
Lufthansa said that the warning strike announced by trade union ver.di had a huge operational impact in the middle of the peak travel season, and thus, the airline had to call almost the entire flight programmes at its hubs in Frankfurt and Munich, AtoZSerwisPlus.com reports.
“Lufthansa will have to call off almost the entire flight program at its hubs in Frankfurt and Munich for Wednesday. Looking ahead to the coming weekend, the start of the vacation season in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg, Lufthansa is working flat out to return flight operations to normal as quickly as possible. Nevertheless, the effects of the strike may still lead to individual flight cancellations or delays on Thursday and Friday,” Lufthansa said on Tuesday.
The airline highlighted that it is trying to return the flight operation to normal as soon as possible. Nonetheless, it has been noted that disruptions may occur in the upcoming days as the strike may lead to other individual cancellations.
Data provided by Lufthansa show that a total of 32 flights were cancelled in Frankfurt, and another 15 were cancelled in Munich on July 26.
In addition, the same revealed that 646 flights were cancelled in Frankfurt, and 330 were cancelled in Munich on July 26.
As a result of a large number of cancelled flights, 92,000 passengers were affected at Frankfurt airport, and another 42,000 passengers were affected at the Munich hub.
“The early escalation of a previously constructive collective bargaining round is causing enormous damage. It affects our passengers, in particular, who are impacted during the peak travel season. And it is putting an additional heavy strain on our employees in an already difficult phase for air traffic,” Chief Human Resources Officer and Labor Director of Deutsche Lufthansa AG, Michael Niggemann, said, commenting on the situation.
Lufthansa is now expected to inform those affected about rebooking or other alternative possibilities. Nonetheless, it has been pointed out that the capacities are very limited.
Previously, AtoZSerisPlus.com reported that the passenger traffic in European airports jumped by 247 per cent in the first six months of 2022. The Airports Council International (ACI) Europe said that the European airports handled an additional 660 million passengers in the first half of 2022. The increase was mainly driven by international traffic.
