Something is definitely not right in the air transport industry, particularly among aeronautical suppliers. The inability of both Airbus and Boeing to deliver their aircraft on time is also found in difficulties experienced by some suppliers in supplying spare parts. They all blame disruptions in supply chains...
This is the case of Rolls Royce which equips Trent 1000 engines for the Boeing 787. A logistics problem that is having a major impact the British Airways long-haul fleet. The airline had to ground 5 of its Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft. This represents 12% for a fleet of 40 aircraft of the same type. It is true that British Airways has drawn on its reserve fleet of Boeing 777s. But some of these aircraft are also undergoing maintenance.
Hence the British carrier's decision to discontinue certain routes. "BA has therefore adjusted its winter programme, which means that several hundred flights disappearing by the end of April 2025.
With a partially reduced schedule this winter, the airline wants to maintain the reliability of its timetables for its customers. British Airways is cancelling one daily flight on New York out of a total of 11 frequencies per day. However, this is thethe only service from London Gatwick to the American metropolis.
The company is also cancelling one of its two daily frequencies on Doha in Qatar. More annoyingly, the launch of the London Heathrow-Kuala Lumpurscheduled for 10 November, is postponed to better days. BA's return to Malaysia was eagerly awaited after several years' absence. Through a code share, it will also offer fast connections to the rest of South East Asia and Australia. The airline promises to launch the link next April. In the meantime, passengers will be re-routed on the two daily frequencies of Malaysia Airlines.
British Airways struggles to maintain punctuality
The wave of cancellations points to real problems of operational reliability in recent years. Problems acknowledged by the management of British Airways, which has made punctuality and reliability one of its number 1 objectives. In particular fleet renewal.
According to a recent article in Financial Times, the number of British Airways flights cancelled or delayed from London Heathrow has risen sharply since the Covid period or even pre-pandemic levels. It is estimated to have almost doubled since 2020.
Visit 2019the Financial Times mentions that 22.17% for BA flights had suffered cancellations and delays. By 2020, this figure had fallen to 15,23%. Since the resumption of traffic, these figures have exploded: 39.7% in 2022, 41.12% in 2023. With an improvement, however, in 2024 to 32.71% (Source: FT-CAA).
In July 2024, according to the FT, 9.11% of all BA flights were cancelled or delayed by more than an hour. This percentage reached 4.48% in July 2019.
