The British national airline British Airways has canceled more than 10.000 flights from its winter schedule, eliminating almost two million seats from the reservation system. The cancellation of short-haul flights, which were supposed to fly from the end of October to the end of March, is aimed at minimizing disruption during the winter season. In an unprecedented move, British Airways announced earlier this month that it was temporarily suspending the sale of new tickets for short-haul flights from Heathrow.
The airline is also canceling long-haul flights to China and Bangkok, citing COVID restrictions. A company representative said the resumption of flights to Hong Kong will be delayed until December when one flight per day will be introduced.
Since the beginning of the summer, British Airways has canceled around 38 flights. Winter cancellations account for almost a tenth of scheduled flights. The decision was a result of turmoil in the airline industry, the Times reported. European airlines are facing record delays in European airspace due to staff shortages, high numbers of sick leave and congestion caused by the closure of airspace over Ukraine and Russia.