(CNN) – Anyone who has been to an airport recently can see that travel demand is back in full force. What isn’t back in full force are the resources needed to deal with the air traveler crush.
Add summer weather to staffing issues at airports and airlines and you have a perfect storm of delays and cancellations.
At one North American airport – Toronto Pearson International Airport in Canada – more than half of scheduled flights between May 26 and July 19 were delayed, according to data compiled for CNN Travel by the flight tracking site FlightAware.
A whopping 52.5% of the airport’s scheduled flights were delayed this summer, the data shows. Toronto Pearson also ranks 4th in the world for flight cancellations, with 6.5% of its flights canceled during this period.
Air Canada on Tuesday introduced a flexible policy offering free ticket changes (subject to availability) specifically targeting Toronto Pearson “due to longer than usual delays.”
The policy allows travelers to change their flights departing or arriving at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport or extend connecting times at Toronto Pearson.
Air Canada has already reduced its summer schedule to reduce flight disruptions and the federal agency Transport Canada has worked with industry to reduce wait times.
Travelers line up at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport on June 30, 2022. More than half of the airport’s recent flights have been delayed.
Yu Ruidong/China Press Service/Getty Images
Europe is also plagued by delays
Europe is also plagued with delays
Of course, Toronto airport is far from the only one struggling with disruptions. Read also : ‘Summer I Turned Good’ Hits No. 1 on Amazon Prime Video, Taylor Swift Songs Re-Enter Top 40 Chart Three Years After Release (EXCLUSIVE).
Seven of the 10 most delayed airports in the world this summer, ranked by percentage of scheduled flights delayed, are in Europe. Frankfurt, Paris, Amsterdam and London airports are experiencing the largest delays, according to data from FlightAware.
London’s Heathrow Airport recently took the extraordinary step of asking airlines to stop selling tickets for overseas travel this summer.
Only one US airport is in the top 10 of the global delays list: Orlando International Airport in Florida. In US-specific FlightAware data CNN reviewed last week, three Florida airports were in the top 10 for US delays.
US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg recently told CNN he is seeing improvements in air travel, but he still expects airlines to do better.
“Look, we rely on airlines to deliver passengers and to be able to manage the tickets they sell,” Buttigieg said.
World airports with the most delays in summer
Global airports with the most summer delays
Here are the top 10 global airports for delays this summer with percentages of flights delayed: See the article : Is the series “Summer I Became Pretty” based on the book? Well, yes and no.
1. Toronto Pearson International Airport (Canada): 52.5%
2. Frankfurt Airport (Germany): 45.4%
3. Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (France): 43.2%
4. Amsterdam Schiphol Airport (Netherlands): 41.5%
5. London Gatwick Airport (UK): 41.1%
6. Heathrow Airport (UK): 40.5%
7. Munich Airport (Germany): 40.4%
8. Athens International Airport (Greece): 37.9%
9. Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport (Australia): 34.2%
10. Orlando International Airport (USA): 33.4%
Rankings are from FlightAware data from May 26 through July 19.
Global airports with the most summer cancellations
Global airports with the most summer cancellations
Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport in China’s Guangdong province is the world’s No. 1 in cancellations this summer, with nearly 8% of canceled flights, according to FlightAware data. Read also : Arts in the Park Continues to Bring Arts and Cultural Performances to Bandshell This Summer. China’s Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport and Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport also rank in the top 10.
Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport in China’s Guangdong province has seen more cancellations than any other airport in the world since late May, FlightAware data shows.
Liang Xu/Xinhua News Agency/Getty Images
Ongoing travel restrictions and instant lockdowns have significantly curbed travel to China, where a strict Covid containment policy has kept the country closed to most international travel since the start of the pandemic.
And during China’s Labor Day holiday in May, domestic travel fell by a third from the same period last year, according to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
Three U.S. airports also rank in the top 10 by percentage of scheduled flights canceled, with New York-area airports Newark and LaGuardia at No. 2 and 3 and Washington National Airport at No. 8.
In the global top 20, airports in Boston (#12), Charlotte (#13), Philadelphia (#14) and Miami (#16) are all on the cancellation list, along with John F. Kennedy New York International Airport (#15) and Chicago O’Hare International Airport (#19).
While Europe dominated the global list of delays, only one European airport – Amsterdam Schiphol – appears in the top 10 for cancellations from May 26 to July 19. Australia and Indonesia also have one entry each in the top 10 for cancellations.
Travelers line up to check in at Newark Liberty International Airport on July 1. Newark is the second airport in the world for cancellations this summer.
Here are the top 10 global airports for cancellations this summer with percentages of canceled flights:
1. Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport (China): 7.9%
2. Newark Liberty International Airport (USA): 7.4%
4. Toronto Pearson International Airport (Canada): 6.5%
5. Soekarno–Hatta International Airport (Indonesia): 6.2%
6. Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport (Australia): 5.9%
7. Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport (China): 5.2%
8. Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (USA): 5%
9. Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport (China): 4.6%
10. Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (Netherlands): 3.9%
Correction: A previous version of this story mentioned “delays” where it should have said “cancellations” regarding Amsterdam Airport Schiphol and airports in Australia and Indonesia.
CNN’s Nectar Gan, Pete Muntean and Gregory Wallace contributed to this report.
