After easyJet on Monday (July 10) cancelled 1,700 summer flights from Gatwick Airport, tens of thousands of travellers will have their travel plans ruined.
The budget airline said about 95 per cent of affected passengers had been rebooked on to other flights.
However, the Guardian reported that it was understood that about 9,000 passengers had yet to be put on new flights. The rest have been offered a refund.
Here’s why easyJet has cancelled so many flights.
Why has easyJet cancelled flights?
There have been suggestions that easyJet had cancelled flights due to pilot or crew shortages.
However, an easyJet representative said on Monday (July 10): “The whole industry is seeing challenging conditions this summer with more constrained air space due to the war in Ukraine resulting in unprecedented ATC [air traffic control] delays, as well as further potential ATC strike action.
“We have therefore made some pre-emptive adjustments to our programme consolidating a small number of flights at Gatwick, where we have multiple daily frequencies, in order to help mitigate these external challenges on the day of travel for our customers. We continue to operate around over 90,000 flights over this period.”
Which easyJet flights have been cancelled?
The Independent reported that the axed flights, which were due to depart from Gatwick in July, August and September, will affect about 180,000 people. Check for any emails or text messages from easyJet to see if your flight is affected.
Passengers waiting at Gatwick for the final flight to Belfast on Sunday, July 9 and at Budapest Airport for a trip back to London reportedly had their planes cancelled.
What do to if easyJet has cancelled your flight
An easyJet representative said: “Customers whose flights are affected are being informed, with 95 per cent of customers being rebooked on to an alternative flight and all customers provided with the option to rebook or receive a refund. We are sorry for any inconvenience that this may have caused.”
Easyjet’s website explains your options if your flight has been cancelled. These are:
- Switch to another flight free of charge. On Manage Bookings, you’ll be able to book seats on the next available flight. If there are no direct flights available, you can also search for flights to or from nearby airports within the same country or indirect flights on the easyJet network.
- Choose a voucher for the full value of your booking. The voucher is valid for 12 months from the date of issue and gives you the flexibility to book travel anywhere on our network when you’re ready to fly. You can request the voucher yourself via Manage Bookings.
- Request a refund. You can get a refund for the full value of your booking. Refunds will be paid to the account you made the booking with. We’re processing refund requests within seven days. They may take a few extra days to come through to your bank account. Once you’ve submitted an online refund request, you can track the status of your requestâ¯here.
You can also contact easyJet’s customer service department on 0330 551 5151.
