Lufthansa scraps 3,100 flights as Europe travel chaos mounts

Deutsche Lufthansa is canceling a total of 3,100 flights after a wave of coronavirus infections worsened staffing shortages, adding to Europe’s travel chaos as the crucial summer vacation period gets under way. Germany’s flagship airline on Friday announced it will scrap 2,200 domestic and European routes in July and August, on top of 900 cancellations unveiled earlier this month. That’s around 4% of the carrier’s capacity during that period, according to a spokesperson. Lufthansa fell as much as 3.4% in Frankfurt. Travel demand has rebounded dramatically in Europe with the lifting of virus curbs, leaving some airlines struggling to cope and subjecting passengers to hours-long queues and cancellations. A new Covid-19 outbreak—while less deadly than previous waves—is causing growing absences from workplaces, worsening acute labor shortages. Growing labor unrest as workers seek pay increases to keep up with inflation is adding to the problem, with strikes threatened or under way at airlines including Ryanair and IAG’s British Airways. The developments are a fresh blow to the European aviation industry that was among the worst-affected during the pandemic, with airlines and airports losing billions of euros after the virus burst a decades-long travel boom. Carriers cut back staffing during the health crisis and have been slow to rebuild, worried about the resiliency of ticket sales. The Lufthansa cancellations add to disruptions at the region’s airports, which are struggling to attract ground-handling staff over pay disputes, further crimping capacity.<br/>