Sweltering Summer Skies: Lufthansa's Swiss Daughter to Ax 1,400 Flights
Swiss, a Lufthansa subsidiary, is forced to scrap approximately 1400 flights throughout the summer season.
Hop on a plane and jet off to your dream destination this summer? Think again! Lufthansa's Swiss offspring is grounding a whopping 1,400 flights before the leaves start falling. And it's all because of a sky-high pilot shortfall.
You'd think the demand for vacay flights would be off the charts. But it's not. The problem lies closer to home. Here's the dirt:
The shortage is a perfect storm of unfortunate events: overly optimistic planning, absent pilots, new aircraft training, improved work conditions, and a few pesky engine problems.
Swiss, Lufthansa's beloved Swiss daughter, has booked too many planes without considering potential crew downtime and training needs. The airline isn't immune to life's twists and turns—there are more pilots out of action than usual thanks to pregnancies, accidents, and other unforeseen circumstances. Not to mention, the arrival of the Airbus A350 requires on-the-job training, further tying up pilot resources.
Add to that a sweet new labor agreement that gives their crew better work hours but adds 70 full-time positions to the roster. And don't forget those darn Airbus A220 jet engines. They're playing hard to get, causing maintenance headaches and straining the fleet.
With a 1.5% slice of the fleeting summer flight schedule on the chopping block, Swiss is feeling the burn. But they're not going down without a fight. To weather the storm, they're beefing up their cockpit training and aiming to hire 110 new pilots each year.
In the interim, they're holding out a lifeline to old-timers, asking them to push back their ticket punches, and coaxing part-timers to take on extra shifts.
Source: ntv.de, als/dpa
- Lufthansa Group
- Aviation Crisis
- Labor Disputes
- Training Expansion
- Engine Maintenance
[[1]] Info) Swiss's woes stem from a combination of overly aggressive scheduling, unforeseen pilot absences, crew retraining for new aircraft, labor agreement demands, and maintenance issues with the Airbus A220 fleet. To address these challenges, the company plans to expand its cockpit training capacity and hire 110 new pilots annually while relying on the assistance of existing pilots and part-timers for the present.
The community policy within Swiss, Lufthansa's Swiss daughter, is being adjusted to accommodate increased vocational training for pilots due to a pilot shortage and the introduction of new aircraft like the Airbus A350 and A220. In addition, some lifestyle changes might be necessary for existing pilots, such as working additional shifts or delaying their scheduled vacation time, to address the current aviation crisis.
