The Week In Travel

Heathrow Airport has issued a warning over the re-introduction of Covid-19 testing rules for travellers from China. A statement released by the airport has suggested the move could ‘set back’ the recovery of the European travel industry and claims there is ‘no scientific basis’ for this decision.

Across the Atlantic, a glitch in a vital safety system has created a turbulent week for US aviation, resulting in more than 5,400 cancelled flights and over 800 delays. A corrupted file in the Federal Aviation Administration’s computer system has been blamed for the incident, which ground all air traffic across the US to a halt.

The organisation has announced it has found no evidence of a cyber-attack and has pledged to take ‘all the needed steps’ to prevent a repeat episode.

In encouraging news for the travel industry, global air passenger traffic is continuing on its upward trajectory in November according to the latest data from IATA. Total air traffic was up by 41.3% compared to November 2021 and is now at over 75% of November 2019 levels.

Over on the subcontinent, Air India is set to add a number of routes from multiple Indian cities to London in the coming months. 12 new weekly flights will commence to London Gatwick from Amritsar, Ahmedabad, Goa and Kochi, each operating three times a week. The airline will also be increasing its direct flights to London Heathrow with three additional weekly flights from Delhi and two from Mumbai.

And finally, a tourist in Iceland was given an unfortunate shock after being sold on a Reykjavik hotel as a result of the beautiful views of the country’s famed geysers on offer. She arrived and rushed straight to the window only to find a photo of the aforementioned natural beauty, covering a window that actually looks out onto the hotel room corridor. An inventive method of room service perhaps, but disappointing nonetheless.