Continued from page 48


reaffirming confidence it will “operate its flying programme as normal” as fuel suppliers report “increased production and additional imports from areas unaffected by the conflict”. EasyJet reported “strong late


bookings” but conceded “forward bookings have been impacted . . . resulting in a later booking curve” as it reported half-year results to the end of March, while affirming its intention “to operate the full summer schedule on sale” and 2% more capacity this summer than last. Chief executive Kenton


Jarvis acknowledged “significant uncertainty” while insisting easyJet “is not seeing any disruption to fuel supply”. The carrier’s pre-tax half-year


losses rose to £552 million despite a 6% rise in passenger numbers and with only an extra £25 million in fuel costs in March. Ryanair deputy director


for flight operations control Conor Gillardy, speaking on a Eurocontrol webinar, said: “We have good eyes on the fuel situation to the end of June. We’re quite confident.” The airline to have suffered


most disruption, Qatar Airways, gave least away on the impact of the war, referring only to “a final month impacted by significant geopolitical events” when revealing a post-tax profit of $1.94 billion for the 12 months to March. These events “closed our airspace and significantly curtailed our operation, the consequences of which remain very much present”. This hardly captures the


extent of the disruption, and costs, to passengers and travel business partners which “remain very much present”.


Eurocontrol calls on ATCs to avoid summer delays


Ian Taylor


European air navigation body Eurocontrol has urged air navigation service providers (ANSPs) to “deliver agreed capacities” and reduce air traffic control delays this summer amid warnings a shortage of air traffic controllers has not been addressed. Guillaume Blandel, operations


director at French air navigation service provider DSNA, noted “demand exceeds capacity often” and told a Eurocontrol webinar: “We don’t have enough air traffic controllers, that is why we’re not resilient.” He reported reduced delays so


far this summer after “we negotiated more-efficient duty rosters and tightened management of absence”, but acknowledged “current resources” in air traffic control covering southern France “are clearly insufficient”. Ryanair deputy director for flight


operations control Conor Gillardy told the webinar: “Air traffic control delayed 200,000 of our flights last year [and] we’re in weekly contact with DSNA because it is the


Administrators continue probe into Luxtripper


The administrators of failed luxury tour operator Luxtripper continue to investigate the affairs of the company prior to administration, according to their latest report. Luxtripper failed in October 2023 a month after its Atol was


46 28 MAY 2026


number-one cause of problems.” He said: “There is huge work to be done on recruitment. There are simply not enough people sitting behind air traffic control desks. “The pace of change in [air traffic


control] recruitment and training and technology rollout is glacial.” However, Gillardy insisted: “We are


no way criticising the controllers. Our criticism is of under-resourcing. We need states to give ANSPs appropriate funding so this level of delays does not carry on into the 2030s.” Bandel warned: “We need to


recruit for the next decade because we face increasing traffic and a wall of retirement [of controllers].”


renewed, when joint administrators Chris Farrington and Simon Jagger of restructuring and recovery services specialist S&W Partners noted the company lacked the cash to pay staff salaries. Yet the CAA had renewed


Luxtripper’s Atol in September 2023 based on accounts showing a near £1.1 million profit for the 12 months to March, helped by £3.6 million in ‘intangible assets’ that were subsequently sold for £115,000. The administration was


Europe’s ATCs are ‘under-resourced’, says Ryanair’s Conor Gillardy


Eurocontrol is urging airlines to


“make realistic schedules, including turnaround times”, execute their flight plans and “fly what you file”, and airports and airlines to “prioritise the first rotations” (set of flights) of the day. It reported a 16% reduction in


flight delays due to air traffic control last year, despite a 4.3% rise in air traffic last summer on 2024. Eurocontrol forecasts traffic this


summer will be 2% up on last year – having reduced an earlier forecast of a 3.3% increase due to the US war on Iran – but it notes some weeks from the end of June could see an increase in traffic of 5% or more.


extended for a year last October. The administrators’ report to April 26 states: “There are a number of matters into which further investigations are being conducted.” A creditor, understood to be


the CAA, has “provided to cover specific costs associated with these ongoing matters”. Luxtripper had an Atol bond for £458,475. It failed owing consumers £5 million and with total debts to unsecured creditors of more than £8.23 million.


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