The UK's Civil Aviation Authority could be given tougher powers to impose penalties directly onto firms in the King's Speech in November
meltdown in the UK’s national air traffic control system
By contrast, other countries have powers to issue substantial fines to airlines for delays and unpaid refunds and compensation. In July, transport minister Jesse Norman told the Labour MP Vicky Foxcroft in a written answer that tougher measures to protect airline passengers would be brought forward when “parliamentary time allows”.
“It’s hard to miss the images of passengers left sleeping on airport floors, or scrambling to find and pay for their own alternative routes home from holiday, when they should have been receiving support from their airlines. This is nothing new though – every year we see some airlines failing to assist, refund or reroute passengers as they’re obliged to do when disruption happens.
He said: “The scale of the disruption has meant passengers have faced longer delays and in some cases are waiting several days for alternative flights, but airlines are working around the clock, putting on extra capacity to resolve the issue.
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