Airline lobby calls for Mexico City flight cuts to be postponed further

An international group that represents major airlines has asked Mexican authorities to postpone planned flight cuts out of the capital airport until the summer 2024 season, which begins in March, it said on Thursday. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) noted its opposition to the reductions, adding that if cuts must happen, they should take effect in March, not in January as currently scheduled, to "allow airlines time to adjust schedules." The government announced the flight cuts at the end of August, sparking an outcry from the aviation sector.

An international group that represents major airlines has asked Mexican authorities to postpone planned flight cuts out of the capital airport until the summer 2024 season, which begins in March, it said on Thursday.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) noted its opposition to the reductions, adding that if cuts must happen, they should take effect in March, not in January as currently scheduled, to "allow airlines time to adjust schedules." The government announced the flight cuts at the end of August, sparking an outcry from the aviation sector. The measure would reduce flights per hour to 43, from 52.

The cuts were originally set to take effect in November, but were postponed to January

after protests from airlines. "The airlines already had tickets sold (for the holiday season)," President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said in a morning press conference earlier this month.

Now, IATA is calling for an additional postponement to adjust schedules as the winter season, which begins the last Sunday of October, is approaching.