British Airways has cancelled all flights between London Gatwick and New York until next year, it has emerged.
Around 103 transatlantic trips are scrapped due to delays in Rolls-Royce delivering their Trent 1000 engines fitted to BA’s 787 Dreamliner aircraft.
The popular route from the UK’s second busiest airport near Crawley, West Sussex to the Big Apple is suspended from December 12 to March 25.
It will impact Britons and families wanting to visit New York for Christmas or the New Year, who have to find alternative carriers or other airports near the capital.
BA said the Gatwick flight is one of up to nine daily services it operates from London to John F. Kennedy International Airport, with the other eight departing from Heathrow.
A spokesman added: “We’re disappointed that we’ve had to make further changes to our schedule as we continue to experience delays to the delivery of engines and parts from Rolls-Royce – particularly in relation to the Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines fitted to our 787 aircraft.
“We’ve taken this action because we do not believe the issue will be solved quickly, and we want to offer our customers the certainty they deserve.
“We’ve apologised to those affected and are able to offer the vast majority a flight the same day with British Airways or one of our partner airlines.
“We continue to work closely with Rolls-Royce to ensure the company is aware of the impact its issues are having on our schedule and customers, and seek reassurance of a prompt and reliable solution.”
Rolls-Royce said: “We continue to work with British Airways and all of our customers to minimise the impact of the limited availability of spares due to the current supply chain constraints.
“Unfortunately, this is an issue affecting the whole aerospace industry.”
