London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Aug 05, 2025

Flight cancellations: Airlines and airports unable to say when threat to summer holiday getaways will end

Flight cancellations: Airlines and airports unable to say when threat to summer holiday getaways will end

All five of the airlines contacted by Sky News failed to provide an answer after they were asked to say when customers would know for certain that no more cancellations would take place.

There appears to be no end in sight for the uncertainty facing air passengers worried about whether their flights from the UK will be cancelled this summer.

All the airlines contacted by Sky News were unable to give a date when no more flights would be cancelled ahead of the busy holiday period.

It comes after Heathrow asked airlines on Monday to cut 10% of flights at two terminals, while easyJet started cancelling thousands of summer flights.

Also on Monday, Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary, talking about the cancellations in general, said the problem was going to continue right throughout the summer.

Sky News asked easyJet, BA, Tui, Wizz Air and Vueling, all of which have reported cancellations in the last few weeks, when it will be known that there will be no more cancellations.

None provided a clear answer to that question.

In addition, none of the airports where cancellations have occurred provided an answer to the same question, with most saying it was for airlines to comment.

This is despite Transport Secretary Grant Shapps telling travel bosses to "do their bit" to resolve the problems causing chaos at airports after meeting with airport chiefs as well as airlines earlier this month.

Tens of thousands of half-term holidaymakers were left stranded abroad due to flight cancellations during the half-term holidays at the end of May and start of June and there are fears that the scenes could be repeated during the summer break.

Some of the easyJet cancellations are believed to have come after Gatwick Airport announced it was limiting its number of daily flights to 825 in July and 850 in August to help passengers "experience a more reliable and better standard of service".

It is thought this could mean the cancellation of up to 10,000 of 160,000 easyJet flights on sale for July, August and September, although the airline's chief executive Johan Lundgren said on Monday the company had not decided how many cancellations there might be during those months.

Which airports are affected?


Most of the airports Sky News contacted said they were not expecting to see any cancellations.

Luton, Stansted, Edinburgh, Manchester, Birmingham, Newcastle, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Southampton airports all said they have not had to cancel flights or cap capacity over the summer.

But Gatwick confirmed what they reported last week, adding that its cap was designed to "to help prevent short notice and last-minute cancellations".

Heathrow said in addition to British Airways removing 10% of its summer schedule from the airport: "As a precautionary step (and in line with what other EU hub airports like Frankfurt and Amsterdam have also done), we have also worked with airlines in the last month to determine available capacity for check-in at various points throughout the day.

"We then engaged with airlines well in advance of these expectations to enable them to either re-time or consolidate their flights to ensure passenger check-in experiences were safe and to smooth the peaks on airline check-in staff."

What do the airlines say?


EasyJet, which on Tuesday evening still couldn't provide a figure on the number of cancellations, said impacted customers would be "notified directly in the coming days".

It said: "We continue to work through the flying programme to finalise the flights impacted. The vast majority of customers' flights will not be impacted and of those that are, the majority of customers will be rebooked within 24 hours. We will be notifying affected customers directly in the coming days with information on their alternative flight or the option to rebook or receive a refund."

A spokesperson added that while the majority of those who are impacted will be rebooked for free within 24 hours, any customers who are unable to transfer to another easyJet flight for free within 24 hours will be able to rebook with alternative carriers and will be reimbursed for this and any other reasonable expenses incurred as a result of their flight cancellation.

BA said that the vast majority of cancellations that have been reported are not new, but were pre-planned and actioned around a month and a half ago, and customers were notified at the time.

The company says it reduced its schedule by 10% (around 8,000 roundtrips) until the end of October as a result of resource challenges and around 85% of affected passengers have arrived at their destination within 24 hours of their original scheduled arrival.

A spokesperson added: "We've taken responsible pre-emptive action to amend our schedule in order to help provide more certainty for our customers, and are giving them maximum flexibility to either rebook with us or another airline as close to their original departure time as possible or to receive a full refund."

Tui said it planned to notify people as soon as possible if their flights are cancelled, adding: "While flight delays and cancellations with us are rare, unfortunately the increase in people going on holidays combined with complex operational and supply chain issues, meant that a very small number of TUI holidays were impacted over the first weekend of the May half term period.

"Our holidays rely on a complex system of services. This includes our own pilots and cabin crew, as well as operational partners that cover things like check-in, baggage and catering. Alongside that, we work closely with air traffic control and airport security teams. Our planes cannot take to the skies when these systems are not working together as they should be.

"This was an extraordinary situation and we took more than 230,000 people on holiday over the half term week. Our flights are now operating as usual and we are doing everything we can to ensure customers can look forward to enjoying their summer holidays as planned."

Wizz Air and Vueling had yet to comment by the point of publication.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Elon Musk Receives $23.7 Billion Tesla Stock Award
Texas House Paralyzed After Democrats Walk Out Over Redistricting
Mexican Cartels Complicate Sheinbaum’s U.S. Security Talks
Mark Zuckerberg Declares War on the iPhone
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
Tesla Seeks Shareholder Approval for $29 Billion Compensation Package for Elon Musk
Nvidia is cutting prices on its RTX 50-series graphics cards after sales slowed and inventories piled up
Ghislaine Maxwell Transferred to Minimum-Security Prison Amid Ongoing DOJ Discussions
U.S. Tariffs Surge to Highest Levels in Nearly a Century Under Second Trump Term
Matt Taibbi Slams Media for Role in Russiagate Narrative
Pilots Call for Mental Health Support Without Stigma
All Five Trapped Miners Found Dead After El Teniente Mine Collapse
Ong Beng Seng Pleads Guilty in Corruption Case Linked to Former Singapore Transport Minister
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
Italy Fines Shein One Million Euros for Misleading Sustainability Claims
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
Declassified Annex Links Soros‑Affiliated Officials and Clinton Campaign to ‘Russiagate’ Narrative
UK's Online Safety Law: A Front for Censorship
Nationwide Protests Erupt in Brazil Demanding Presidential Resignation
Parents Abandon Child at Barcelona Airport Over Passport Issue
Mystery Surrounds Death of Brazilian Woman with iPhones Glued to Her Body
Bus Driver Discovers Toddler Hidden in Suitcase in New Zealand
Switzerland Celebrates 734 Years of Independence Amid Global Changes
U.S. Opens Official Investigation into Former Trump Prosecutor Jack Smith
Leaked audio of Canada's new PM Mark Carney admitting the truth about the Net Zero agenda: "We're gonna make a lot of money off of this."
China Enforces Comprehensive Ban on Cryptocurrency Activities
Absolutely 100% Realistic EVO Series Doll by EXDOLL (Chinese Company) used mainly for carnal purposes
World Economic Forum founder Klaus Schwab: "In this new world, we must accept... total transparency. You have to get used to it. You have to behave accordingly. But if you have nothing to hide, you shouldn't be afraid."
Meet Mufti Hamid Patel, head of Office for Standards in Education in Pakistan
George Soros tells the World Economic Forum: "President Trump is a con man and the ultimate narcissist, who wants the world to revolve around him."
Hamas are STARVING the hostages.
Decline in Tourism in Majorca Amidst Ongoing Anti-Tourism Protests
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
Poland Begins Excavation at Dziemiany After New Clue to World War II‑Era Nazi Treasure
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Threatens Canada with Tariffs Over Palestinian State Recognition
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Trump Sues Murdoch in “Heavyweight Bout”: Lawsuit Over Alleged Epstein Letter Sets Stage for Courtroom Showdown
Germany Enters Fiscal Crisis as Cabinet Approves €174 Billion in New Debt
Trump Administration Finalizes Broad Tariff Increases on Global Trade Partners
J.K. Rowling Limits Public Engagements Citing Safety Fears
JD.com Launches €2.2 Billion Bid for German Electronics Retailer Ceconomy
Azerbaijan Proceeds with Plan to Legalise Casinos on Artificial Islands
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Jeff Bezos hasn’t paid a dollar in taxes for decades. He makes billions and pays $0 in taxes, LEGALLY
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
×