According to the CEO of a major European airline, Wizz Air, the travel turbulence sweeping the aviation sector is due to a shortfall of airport employees, not a shortage of pilots.
József Váradi, the CEO of Wizz Air, Europe's third-largest budget carrier, told The Times, "There is understaffing in air traffic control management. There is insufficient staffing at airports and in ground handling."
Airlines all across the world have been experiencing a labour shortage. Pilots, flight attendants, and ground crew who were laid off during the pandemic have taken a long time to return, leaving some airlines short at a time when pent-up demand for air travel is at an all-time high.
Thousands of flights have been cancelled as a result of this, as well as wider economic turmoil brought on by the Ukraine conflict.
Váradi told The Times that Wizz, which has 6,000 staff, has adequate numbers of flight attendants and pilots. "The solution is that the supply chain needs to perform to standard – that is what we are missing," he said.
According to The Times, Wizz declared on Monday that it would cease all operations at Doncaster Sheffield airport in northern England on Friday, saying that it had failed to meet its commercial obligations.
According to Bloomberg, doing so would assist it to stabilise operations and reduce delays elsewhere in the UK.
According to an airport official, the airport had met its commitments to the airline.
Insider has reached out to Wizz Air and Peel, the owner of Doncaster Sheffield, for comment.
While many of the issues that airports and the wider transportation sector face are global in nature, Brexit has compounded the challenge for UK businesses.
