It comes when The Telegraph may reveal a new dispute between airlines and ministers. Industry sources claimed that the airline’s chief executive officers rebelled at the demands of Whitehall officials to make a public promise to operate all flights according to their schedules.
It is understood that Department of Transportation officials were turned down during a call with industry leaders earlier this week. However, a government source said: “We have not asked, but we have demanded that airlines review their schedules to make sure they are realistic.”
More than one in 25 flights outside the UK on Thursday was canceled on the day, double the rate earlier in the week, with the disruption attributed to staff shortages exacerbated by Covid.
It followed a 78 per cent increase in flight cancellations across Europe last week, with 4,384 flights buried compared to 2,458 the previous week, according to Cirium, an aviation data analyst.
With a new round of cancellations on the horizon, industrial action is exploding across the continent.
Hundreds of Heathrow BA registration staff have voted in favor of stepping down for pay, and industrial action is expected to take place later this month. It has yet to be confirmed.
Meanwhile, the Spanish-based cabin crew working for Ryanair and easyJet is leaving this weekend, Paris Charles de Gaulle workers have forced cancellations followed by pay and the ground crew in Germany are demanding at least 350 euros more per month.
Up to 1,000 pilots of SAS, the Scandinavian airline, are in wage talks and threatening to strike.