Tui apologises for flight cancellations as UK faces half-term travel chaos

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Tui has apologised after cancelling multiple flights, blaming “operational and supply chain issues”, adding further disruption to half-term travel plans.

The travel company on Saturday announced a “small number” of flight cancellations – six in total – and delays at Birmingham, Gatwick and Manchester airports.

It comes after airline easyJet cancelled more than 200 flights over the next 10 days as many schools broke up on Friday for half-term. It said the cancellations would affect about 24 flights a day from Gatwick airport between Saturday and 6 June.

Tui said it would provide refreshments for delayed customers and hotel accommodation “where appropriate”. They pledged to refund cancelled flights within two weeks.

A spokesperson for the travel company said: “We would like to apologise for the inconvenience to customers who have experienced flight delays or a flight cancellation. Delays have been caused due to a combination of factors and we are doing everything we can to keep customers updated, and will provide refreshments and, where appropriate, provide hotel accommodation.

“Where we have made the difficult decision to cancel a small number of flights, customers will receive a full refund within 14 days and we will contact them directly to help them try and find another holiday. We would like to thank our customers for their understanding and apologise for any inconvenience caused.”

EasyJet apologised for its 200 cancellations but said they were “necessary to provide reliable services over this busy period”.

“We have taken the decision to make advance cancellations of around 24 Gatwick flights per day starting from 28 May until 6 June,” a spokesperson said. “We are very sorry for the late notice of some of these cancellations and inconvenience caused for customers booked on these flights.”

They added: “Customers are being informed from today [Friday] and provided with the option to rebook their flight or receive a refund and can apply for compensation in line with regulations.”

There were also reportedly long queues at airports including Gatwick, Manchester, Stansted and Bristol.

Meanwhile, Liverpool supporters on their way to Paris for the Champions League final on Saturday and families on half-term breaks faced significant waits at the port of Dover and airports.

Thousands of football fans descended on the port on Friday and there is high demand from holidaymakers.

In half-term travel information, the port advised passengers to “pack adequate supplies including food and water” in case of delays and warned that it was “expecting “a very busy week ahead”.

They said: “We ask that all allow plenty of time for their journey and advise ferry passengers to check with their chosen operator for updates.”