BA flight cancellations and delays double post-Covid

British Airways’ customers have suffered a doubling of flight delays and cancellations to and from the airline’s London’s hub Heathrow since the Covid pandemic, a Financial Times analysis shows. The airline, which has been grappling with operational problems, including air traffic control delays and engine shortages, saw 9% of its Heathrow flights cancelled or delayed by more than 61 minutes in the 12 months to July this year, compared with 4.5% over the same period in 2019. Other airlines flying via the hub saw disruptions increase by less than a fifth over the same period to 7.5%. BA’s senior management told staff last week that the airline had faced a “difficult” summer, mainly because of disruption caused by air traffic control restrictions. They also warned of further problems to come because of delays receiving engines and other spare parts from Rolls-Royce for its Boeing 787 long-haul aircraft. About five of BA’s 40-strong fleet of 787s are currently grounded. “BA is facing significant external challenges, creating both poor punctuality and high cancellations,” said John Strickland, an aviation consultant. “It needs to make this an overriding internal focus to get back to the performance which should be expected”. Strickland added he believed BA’s management, including its CE Sean Doyle, are aware of the problems and giving them “the required focus”. <br/>