The passenger limit at London Heathrow Airport will apply until October 29, 2022. This was what the authorities of one of the largest airports in Europe decided. According to the original plans, the restriction was to last until September 11. The daily limit is 100,000 passengers.
The cap was introduced on July 11 to reduce the scale of the problems caused by insufficient staffing, which, unlike air traffic, has still not returned to pre-COVID-19 levels. This situation results in late and last-minute flight cancellations, long lines for check-in and inspection, and problems with baggage delivery.
“Since the quota was introduced, passenger travel has improved – with fewer last-minute cancellations, better punctuality and shorter waiting times for luggage,” Heathrow officials said in a release. They added that if employment rose and the situation continued to improve, it would be possible to lift the quota earlier.
As a result of the introduction of the limit, the number of flights was reduced and the Heathrow authorities asked the airlines to stop selling tickets for the summer period if this would exceed the number of 100,000 flights. departing passengers per day.
Passenger limit at Schiphol airport
Amsterdam Airport Schiphol authorities also recently announced extension of the daily passenger quota. In September, the passenger limit will be 67.5 thousand. per day, and in October it will increase to 69.5 thousand. Similar restrictions also apply during the current holiday season.
During the pandemic, when air traffic decreased significantly due to travel restrictions, employment was also reduced, especially among ground staff, and now that the demand for flying has returned to pre-pandemic levels, airports have lacked staff for baggage handling, security, security or cleaning, which means that airlines are not able to perform all scheduled flights.
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