Airport to travelers: Staffing shortages will get better
By Rayvin Bleu and James Paxson
Click here for updates on this story
FLINT, Michigan (WNEM) — As millions of travelers head out for their summer vacations, many could find their plans have come to an abrupt halt.
“The airlines have cut back capacity throughout the summer,” Flint Bishop International Airport CEO Nino Sapone said.
Airlines across the country have been canceling or suspending flights because of staffing shortages. The shortages have the potential to affect airports, like Flint Bishop International.
“Regional jets to certain cities like Flint, they’re the ones that are seeing most of the hits because they’re pulling all the regional pilots to mainline,” Sapone said.
Sapone said airlines did not expect the industry to bounce back so quickly after the pandemic and because of that, a lot of staff were furloughed or retired – causing the shortage.
Airlines are not the only ones suffering from staffing shortages.
“Every line of work, concessionaires, they’re having trouble hiring people. Rental cars. You said the airlines, it’s every line of business. It’s tough. Staffing is tough,” Sapone said.
In order to help fill the many open positions that are at the airport and with the airlines, officials at Bishop held a job fair a few months ago where 300 people participated. However, there are still openings available.
The airport is planning on hosting another fair.
Sapone said despite the issues with staffing, flight cancelations and suspensions, people should still continue to fly.
“It’s going to get better. I mean, if we don’t support the carriers and flights aren’t full, you know, they’re not going to put planes in cities,” Sapone said.
Airport officials say travelers should pack their patience with them when they head to the airport because they could find delays.
Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.
