UK airlines and airports scramble to hire staff as travel takes off again

Lengthy background checks and a tight labour market are hampering the replacement of thousands of workers axed during Covid

Are you unfazed by heights, able to swim, not visibly tattooed, either taller than 5 ft 2in or possessed of extraordinarily long arms, and able to survive on 16k basic a year? Then there is a pretty good chance an airline needs you.

Cabin crew are just a few of the roles the aviation sector has been desperately trying to fill after the bounceback from Covid. Employees were axed en masse as the pandemic hit and flights were grounded, with British Airways alone shedding 10,000 people.