Airlines that dropped mask requirements are now suffering staff shortages due to COVID-19

Foreign airlines have to cancel hundreds of flights while fighting coronavirus– the shortage of related personnel weeks after they abandoned the rules requiring passengers and staff to mask themselves in the air.

Interruptions also occur when CEOs of major US airlines urge the Biden administration to repeal a federal rule demanding that masks be worn in the sky.

Masks have not been required on flights operated by Swiss airline EasyJet since March 27, the airline said in a statement. The move came after the UK lifted all travel restrictions in early March.

“This welcome decision by the UK government marks a return to truly unrestricted flying to and from the UK, giving an extra boost to travel this Easter. We are looking forward to what we hope will be a strong summer for EasyJet, with plans to return to near-2019 flight levels. We can’t wait to see more customers on board, “EasyJet CEO Johan Lundgren said in a statement.

Between March 28 and April 3, EasyJet canceled 202 of its 3,517 flights scheduled to leave the UK, according to data provided to CBS MoneyWatch by Cirium, an aviation analysis company. In comparison, the company canceled zero flights departing from the UK during the same period in 2019, before the pandemic.

An EasyJet spokesman attributed the increase in canceled flights to “higher-than-usual staffing sickness levels” due to a recent increase in COVID-19 cases in Europe.

“As a result, we’ve made preventive cancellations so customers can be notified before the trip and can easily move on to alternative flights,” the spokesman said in a statement to CBS MoneyWatch.

According to Dr. Eric Feigl-Ding, an epidemiologist and health economist, these flight cancellations were almost guaranteed once the passengers and crew members removed their masks.

“Damn predictable: UK government removes restrictions, airlines like @easyJet drop masks … and less than 2 weeks later … a huge increase in pilots and flight attendants sick with # COVID19 not they can work and 120 flights have been canceled! The CEOs asked for it, “he said on Twitter.

A similar move by U.S. airlines “would be counterproductive in many ways,” Feigl-Ding told CBS MoneyWatch. He believes more passengers would be hesitant to fly if airlines abandon the rules of masks. “If there are no masks, that makes people more concerned about making the trip. Maybe more people will stay home and bite the airlines,” he said.

General flight cancellations persisted during the first week of April, and UK airlines canceled 769 flights, or 4% of all scheduled flights, between March 31 and March 7. April, according to Cirium.

EasyJet canceled 309 outbound flights, accounting for 40% of UK cancellations

Impact on US airlines

United Airlines, which canceled hundreds of flights in December because many crew members contracted COVID-19 as the Omicron variant was extended during the holidays, said it is not currently experiencing any related interruptions. with employees infected with COVID-19.

Similarly, an American Airlines spokesman said the company “has not had any operational problems,” but that it is monitoring the situation closely. Delta told CBS MoneyWatch that it is experiencing normal levels of absenteeism among its crew due to illness.

A federal standard still requires passengers and crew members to wear face masks in the air. However, US airlines are preparing for a possible increase in COVID-19 cases such as Subvariant Omicron BA.2 becomes dominant.

“There’s a risk of seeing it in North America and it all depends on case rates,” said Rob Morris, head of Ascend by Cirium, an airline analysis and consulting agency. “But it will be relatively short-term because airlines will adjust their ability to manage demand and protect the integrity of their network.”

While staff shortages related to rising COVID-19 rates in Europe are disrupting other sectors, it is especially severe in the airline industry.

“It’s very clear that the airline industry is especially vulnerable, and that creates a cascading effect on society rather than, for example, the closure of a restaurant,” Feigl-Ding said. “This is a critical infrastructure and these are essential employees, and we are endangering our economy. Stopping COVID is good for our economy, ‘letting it break’ is exactly the opposite.”

British Airways cancellations

Other airlines that have abandoned mask rules are also canceling more flights than usual. On flights operated by British Airways, based in London, England, masks are optional for staff and passengers from 16 March. The airline made the announcement on the day Twitter sharing a video of a flight attendant enthusiastically ripping off a surgical mask.

Between March 28 and April 3, British Airways canceled 393 of the 2,405 flights scheduled to leave the UK, according to Cirium.

A British Airways spokesman said only a small portion of its recently canceled flights were ruled out due to COVID-19. The spokesman said the airline canceled three last-minute flights on Tuesday due to staff testing positive for the disease, adding that some of the cancellations were due to reconstruction-related problems. ‘operations while managing the continued impact of COVID’.

“Therefore, while the vast majority of our flights continue to operate as planned, as a precaution we have slightly reduced our schedule from now until the end of May as we increase again,” the spokesman said. .