The airline industry is preparing for chaos. But this does not make it respond to it less complicated.
The carriers were working Frentical on Friday to recreate flights after a power outage at Heathrow Airport in London, a world hub, left tens of thousands of passengers. But the aviation system is deeply interconnected and the response to such serious disorders is a subtle act of balancing. For airlines, moving even a small number of flights can have waterfall effects.
“They think not only from a day’s point of view, but also about the recovery,” said Dr. Michael McCormick, a professor of air traffic management at Embry -Riddle, who managed federal airspace in New York during the September 11th terrorist. “They have to consider where passengers with handbags, aircraft and aircraft should be tomorrow, the next day and the next day.”
When crises occur, the operating centers of the airline network jump on overdrive. These are the nervous centers of the business – usually large, quiet, safe rooms with a backup and protection from intense weather and disaster.
In large airlines, operating centers are staffed around the clock with weather -watching teams, managing airplanes and flights, communicating with air traffic control, timetable crews and much more.
Small disorders can be treated surgically – a sick pilot can be replaced with an alternative nearby or a broken plane that has changed for another. However, biggest disorders such as the one in Heathrow can require dissolution and review of complex designs, taking into account a wide range of restrictions.
When the Southwest Airlines fought to overcome the effects of serious weather during the winter holidays in late 2022, for example, it cancels thousands of flights for several days to move crews and planes in whatever it should be.
On Friday, the Ryanair budget airline, which is operating frequent flights across Europe, said it had added eight flights between Dublin and London’s Stansted Airport for two days to “rescue” passengers affected by Heathrow. Other airlines were also desperately working to repeat the passengers, but this is often easier to say than to be done.
Airplanes differ in how many people can bring and how far they can fly, so a small plane used for smaller domestic flights cannot easily change for a larger one used on longer flights. They must also be adequately fed and their weight is properly balanced, the needs to be adjusted if the levels are redefined.
Regulations also require that pilots and stewards have no excessive work and are allowed to rest after a few hours on the clock. If a flight takes a long time to depart, a crew can take time. When developers redefine the crews, they must also take into account where pilots and flight employees are needed then or could risk more disorders later.
“Even if things will come back and work soon, we will have the issue of logistical support for new crews to operate these aircraft,” said Sean Doyle, CEO of British Airways.
The airline operates more than half of the flights inside and outside Heathrow, according to Cirium, an aviation data company. In the statement, Mr Doyle said the interruption would have a “huge impact” for British Airways customers in the coming days.
Airlines, of course, do not work individually. As they change plans, they must work with airport and airport control officials, who may have limited resources to satisfy the changes. Airports are limited not only to how many flights they can receive, but also in some cases which types of airplanes can safely accept. National aviation systems may also be limited: in the United States, for example, many air traffic control towers have long suffered from auditors’ deficiencies.
Disorders, referred to as irregular businesses, are frequent and the industry is prepared for them. Airlines and airports are testing how they can respond to disorder caused by serious weather conditions, terrorist attacks and other disasters and maintain playbooks. But the disorder can take many forms so that these designs are often only drivers.
“There is always a need for some improvisation, as each situation has its own unique challenges,” said Tom Parry, head of business resilience at kiwi.com, a website of travel searches and bids.
The power outage at Heathrow was caused by a fire in a nearby electrical substation. Police in London said there was no indication that it was the result of an intentional act, though they were still investigating. Such fires are rare, but some criticized Heathrow because they were not better prepared.
“How is the critical infrastructure – national and global importance – depends completely on a single source of energy without an alternative,” Willie Walsh, general manager of the International Air Transport Association, said in a statement.
