Ryanair has said up to 600 flights a day could be cancelled next week due to strikes by French air traffic controllers, potentially disrupting travel for around 100,000 passengers.
The country’s largest ATC union, the SNCTA, has called a four-day strike from 7 to 10 October, which is expected to reduce capacity across western Europe. Flights between the UK, France, Spain, Italy, and Greece are among those most at risk, as they pass through French airspace.
Michael O’Leary, Ryanair’s chief executive, repeated his call for the EU to step in and protect “overflights” – flights that pass over France without landing there.
“They have the right to strike, but if flights are to be cancelled, they should be flights arriving to and from France. They should not be overflights,” O’Leary said, urging European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen to act.
Ryanair has already been hit by recent industrial action. About 30 flights were cancelled on Thursday during smaller union strikes, while more than 190 were delayed on 18 September.
Other airlines, including EasyJet and British Airways, have not yet confirmed the expected level of disruption, but operators across Europe are braced for widespread cancellations and delays.
The strikes add to ongoing challenges for European aviation, with post-pandemic staff shortages, technical failures, and restricted airspace from the war in Ukraine all contributing to bottlenecks in recent months.
