Welcome to a new edition of our Aviation Update, did you know that there are currently thousands and thousands of unclaimed suitcases sitting at Heathrow Airport, perhaps you've heard that airline workers plan to strike throughout the month of July. More of this below!
Also, since the last edition we successfully launched our FREE 15 minute consultations for the month of June whilst slots lasted, these sold out immediately and unfortunately our system ended up creating some double bookings, to those who had their consultations cancelled, we will be in contact with you to re arrange your session. Keep an eye out for more slots coming soon! We hope you enjoy the latest edition of the aviation update!
We have all been there before, you have arrived at your destination and are patiently waiting for your suitcase to show up on the carousel, only for it to be missing. Whilst an inconvenience, this issue is normally resolved within a day or two. If you were flying out of Heathrow on the 20th of June, you may have had to wait a bit longer. A breakdown of the luggage system forced several airlines to cancel flights as well as thousands of passengers to go without their luggage, effectively turning the airports Terminal 2 into a luggage carpet.
The airport has been having intermittent problems with its luggage systems but other issues such as chronic staff shortages (particularly in security) as well as airline staff strikes and the busy travel season kicking off earlier than usual has been a cause for chaos at Europe's busiest international airport.
British Airways executives are to cancel hundreds of flights from its summer schedule, the decision comes as the airline is expecting a difficult time meeting staff requirements. The London based carrier is also facing the threat of strikes from many of its staff members due to their low pay, many workers voluntarily reduced their pay during the pandemic to help airlines make ends meet. With passenger numbers now up and demand being higher than ever, the airline workers have demanded for their original pay to be restored. With inflation currently sitting at over 10% in the UK. Many have been feeling financial difficulties, but with airlines expected to be profitable this year, some say that the airlines should pass on the profits to those who run it.
With Airlines across Europe all announcing flight cancellations for the summer months, what exactly is happening? With airlines recruiting more than ever, you would thing that there would be plenty of people to handle the extra passengers and travellers, so why are we still getting delays? The as always, is more complicated than it seems.
Airline executives originally stated that they expected passenger demand to remain low for a number of years following the pandemic and whilst some carriers, particularly in the Middle East, foresaw the return to travel much earlier than companies in other regions of the world, it is not just airlines that are responsible for allowing people to travel. Governments across the world had to let customs, border and immigration workers go due to a lack of goods and people moving. It takes a long time to train people to take on these specialist roles. The same goes for security agencies within airports and other trades that are involved in flying, such as catering, cleaning, fuel and retail to name a few of the other industries affected.
Another issue has arisen with workers going on strike due to pay disputes, many workers had to take pay cuts to keep their jobs but now that the airlines are back into profitability, they have been unable to pass the money down as quickly as others have expected, this is largely because airlines budget a year in advance and it is difficult to get expenditure approvals without a board. Inflation and the fuel prices have made this problem much bigger than it was anticipated and disgruntled workers have had to work harder whilst getting less money.
Some companies have been much better than others at keeping their workers happy but for the most part in Europe and America, workers have not received their pay back. This is in contrast to the Middle East carriers who have mostly restored original pre pandemic wages and in some cases offered substantially improved pay packages.
Recruitment for all the major airlines is currently ongoing and as ever, we are extremely happy to advice and help out those who want to reach their dreams and work as a Flight Attendant. As of Friday 31st of July the following airlines in the Middle East are hiring. Please click on the relevant airline below to get their procedures and their individual requirements.
We are also happy to advise those who want to join any airline not listed above as well as those who wish to fly for a Private Carrier.
For more information on the differences between Private and Commercial Carriers, please download our Free eBook. Its packed with hints and tips on how to write your CV as well as basic information to help you get started on your journey to becoming a Flight Attendant and make sure you always keep a look for our latest offers in our shop here.
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