A tender man adjusting a face mask stands in front of the departure. Ryanair EasyJet and Wizz Air have now cancelled all flights to Italy. ***** When Italy s government placed the northern region of Lombardy on lockdown this weekend many assumed that Milan s airports would immediately halt flights
The reason behind isolating Lombardy in spite of everything is to slow the spread of COVID-19 the coronavirus disease that has up to now infected 109 500 people worldwide killing 3 800
Italy is by far the European country worst stricken by the outbreak with 7 375 cases and 366 deaths
Lombardy is its worst hit region. Several countries and airlines have already taken matters into their own hands by grounding flights and cutting frequencies to northern Italy. Yet as of Sunday March 8th the day that the lockdown began Milan s Malpensa Airport and Bergamo Airport were both insisting that it’s business as usual in their terminals
Bergamo Airport s operator remains sharing a video that encourages its customers to #keeponflying
The placement is infuriating for thousands of people who booked flights to Italy weeks ago and now not want to use their tickets. Unlike travellers whose flights were cancelled they don’t seem to be automatically entitled to a refund
At Malpensa Airport – Milan s primary gateway which is well liked by full-service and long-haul carriers – most customers were given the option of rescheduling their flights for free
But that generosity has not been extended to these flying into Bergamo Airport the region s low-cost hub. Its biggest operators Ryanair and Wizz Air both insist that passengers are subject to the standard terms and prerequisites that usually apply for voluntary cancelations
In practice this means either binning your ticket or paying a flight-change fee that often exceeds the cost of the original booking
The same applies to customers of EasyJet Malpensa s main low-cost carrier
