By Peter McLaren-Kennedy • Published: 11 Apr 2022 • 15:33
Heathrow panic as airports rushes to hire 12,000 new staff image: Pixabay
Heathrow airport managers admitted on Monday April 11th that the airport is stretched with insufficient staff numbers to cope with the uptick in travel. The company has struggled to gear up staffing in time for a March that has been the busiest since the pandemic began more than two years ago.
The delays are said to get worse in the short term with the airport unlikely to hire sufficient staff in time to cope with current demand, however they aim to do so by the time the summer rush gets underway.
Because of staffing shortages and the added Covid-19 checks required, documentation that covers test results, vaccination status and quarantine requirements, delays are expected in the short to medium term. Passengers have once again been warned to take the extended travel delays into account when planning their trip to and through the airport.
Delays are expected to be particularly bad over the Easter week with high numbers of passengers departing during the mid-term break, and not just Heathrow but also at other airports.
With strong demand, driven by outbound leisure and school holidays, #Heathrow's passenger numbers in March were the highest since the start of the pandemic, following the Government's removal of all travel restrictions. Read the full release at https://t.co/k5pb5geOsE pic.twitter.com/mMtnjAT9Px — Heathrow Airport (@HeathrowAirport) April 11, 2022
With strong demand, driven by outbound leisure and school holidays, #Heathrow's passenger numbers in March were the highest since the start of the pandemic, following the Government's removal of all travel restrictions.
Read the full release at https://t.co/k5pb5geOsE pic.twitter.com/mMtnjAT9Px
— Heathrow Airport (@HeathrowAirport) April 11, 2022
A statement of Heathrow said: “Following a very weak January and February, passenger numbers in March were the highest since the start of the pandemic, following the government’s removal of all travel restrictions, making the UK the first country in the world to do so.
“The aviation sector has been rebuilding capacity ahead of a summer peak, so resources are stretched. Heathrow is working closely with airlines and ground handlers to make sure this increase in demand can be met while keeping passengers safe.”
Delays have also resulted due to understaffing on border posts with additional immigration checks in place following Brexit. Discussions with the Home Office are said to be well advanced in making available additional staffing.
The airport added that they were: “Particularly concerned over Border Force’s ability to scale up to meet demand.”
Part of the panic at Heathrow is the need to reopen Terminal 4, which was closed during the pandemic and which will require a significant portion of the 12,000 new staff that the company needs to hire.
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Originally from South Africa, Peter is based on the Costa Blanca and is a web reporter for the Euro Weekly News covering international and Spanish national news. Got a news story you want to share? Then get in touch at editorial@euroweeklynews.com.
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