Ryanair has said it may be forced to cancel up to 600 flights a day during next week’s French air traffic control (ATC) strikes, potentially affecting as many as 100,000 passengers.
The strikes, called by France’s largest ATC union SNCTA, are scheduled for 7–10 October and will disrupt flights across western European airspace. Routes from the UK to Spain, Italy, Greece and other holiday destinations that overfly France are expected to be heavily impacted.
Michael O’Leary, Ryanair’s chief executive, renewed his demand for EU intervention to protect overflights. “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,” he said. He urged European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen to act, adding that Eurocontrol could manage overflights during strike periods.
Airlines will only know the scale of cancellations once the strikes begin, but Ryanair anticipates major disruption. The carrier said more than 190 of its flights carrying 35,000 passengers were delayed during a previous strike on 18 September, while about 30 flights were cancelled on Thursday during smaller-scale action.
Other airlines, including EasyJet and British Airways, have not yet given estimates of the impact.
The strikes come amid wider pressure on Europe’s air traffic systems, with staffing shortages and the closure of Ukrainian and Russian airspace already placing strain on available flight routes.
