Cancelled fights and holidays down the drain

July is summer and holiday time for most people in Norway. And in Spain. And elsewhere in Europe. Many, especially many after several summers limited by Covid and pandemic, have longed to travel on holiday to places outside their home regions, to places that are best reached by using a plane. But, the airlines, many of them at least, have such big problems that a large proportion of this summer's travelers have not gotten taken off. That is NOT okay.

Seems like it works here though....

Lufthansa has canceled hundreds of flights. The main reason is that they lack staff to operate aircraft, passengers and luggage. Many were fired when the pandemic came and travel approached a zero point. But when travel picked up again, and the need for people grew, yes, then it became difficult to recruit again. Some had found new, perhaps more comfortable jobs. Others will not return because employment conditions and salaries are worse. The cost of living has also increased you know.

SAS is struggling with 800 pilots on strike. They have been dismissed or laid off, and in order to return they had to accept employment in, for example, SAS Connect, which does not match what they had in contractual conditions before the pandemic. As a result, hundreds of flights were canceled, tens of thousands of passengers with broken holiday dreams, frustrations, sweat, anger and unnecessarily used energy around the struggle to find alternatives, stress of finding out their own situation. What are we going to say to the kids? Are we coming aboard that plane??

Maybe those who strike are right in their demands? Yes. Is it necessary for them to strike just during the busiest travel time? Just this summer after the pandemic? You can see that the bargaining strength of the strikers is much stronger in such a pressed situation. Still, do they take into account what most people think and that the innocent third parties become the ones who have to pay the consecuences? Probably not. In Spain, Ryanair's cabin crew have gone on strike. Likewise the staff of another low-cost company Easyjet. Thousands of travelers stranded at airports with luggage and family ... Dreams of wonderful holidays have gone straight down the drain.

Will we reach our destinations this summer???