The delays and cancellations of flights throughout Europe are embittering the vacations of more than one this summer. The chances of getting stranded threaten to disrupt plans, something that is more likely to happen at certain airports, according to a recently released study by booking platform Hopper.
A ranking prepared by the firm indicates the great victims: Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom are in the crosshairs.
The data collects the percentage of delayed and canceled flights over the total scheduled in the main airports of the continent based on data from OAG, one of the main aviation consultancies. The figures are collected from July 1 to 10.
Despite being one of the most affected by the number of travelers and having had to limit the number of daily travelers, Heathrow (London, United Kingdom), is left out.
On the opposite side, the airport with the best records is Bergamo (Italy), with only 3% of flights delayed and 1% cancelled.
It is followed by Gran Canaria (8% delays, 0.3% cancelled); Otopeni (Bucharest, Romania) with 10% and 1.7% respectively; Dublin (Ireland) with 15% and 1.6% and Fontanarossa (Catania, Italy) with 16% and 1.1%.
Three other Spanish airports sneak into the top ten with Madrid sixth, with 19% and 0.4%, Alicante seventh (20% and 3.4%) and Malaga tenth (24%, 3.3%).
Given the situation, from Hopper it is recommended to be flexible with the dates on which you travel. For example, in the case of the United Kingdom, departures on Monday or Tuesday tend to have fewer delays. On weekends, in addition to more expensive flights, there is the possibility of greater problems.
You also have to be flexible in schedules and travel early in the day. Delays and cancellations can worsen throughout the day, most significantly affecting later flights. Each delay accumulates on subsequent flights.
Another alternative is to avoid the big airports and opt for the regional ones or directly buy a flight with cancellation insurance or protection that allows rebooking without any setbacks if the flight is cancelled.
As a last piece of advice, it is recommended to add a margin day on the way back in case there are setbacks on the way back, so that you do not leave in a hurry and just have time to go back to work.
