French Strikes Led to More than 6,000 Cancelled Flights

The authorities have revealed that a total of 6,338 flight cancellations were made due to the major strikes in France since January.

SchengenVisaInfo.com reported that according to data shared by BFM Business and the General Directorate of Civil Aviation, between January 19th and April 9th, more than 6,000 flights were cancelled. The cancellations occurred due to the French strikes against the proposal of increasing the legal retirement from 62 years to 64, SchengenVisaInfo.com said.

Although DGAC had asked airlines and respective authorities to preventively cancel flights ahead of time, several airports, such as Paris-Orly, Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle, Bordeaux, Toulouse, Marseille, and Nantes, made last-minute cancellations.

"When the DGAC asks airlines to reduce their flight schedule, the airlines generally have 24 hours to send a proposal for their modified flight schedule for the day(s) concerned", the authority said.

Air traffic controllers have had to coordinate nearly 572,000 flights in the past few months that crossed French airspace. This is because the strikes didn't only affect flights departing or landing in France, but also flights that passed through French airspace.

Ryanair revealed that 80 percent of delayed flights were due to overflights.

The French minimum service agreements ensure that 80 percent of domestic flights will be serviced even during strikes. Air France, the French flag carrier, says that in the past months only 30-50 flights were cancelled, mostly at Paris-Orly Airport.

"It's just not fair that flights to and from France are protected by minimum service laws during ATC strikes, but overflights are unfairly cancelled because the EU Commission has failed to defend the single market for flights and the freedom of movement of EU citizens," Ryanair's Eddie Wilson has mentioned at a press conference in Brussels.

Ryanair, Ireland's low-cost airline, has started a petition urging Ursula von der Leyen and the European Commission to take action to ensure free movement of European citizens. Travelling to France, and even within France, is becoming a problem for both visitors and residents due to the strikes.

The petition calls for EU overflights and other ATCs in Europe, which are overseen and managed by the Organisation for Safety and Air Navigation of the EU (Eurocontrol), be included into the French minimum service law to manage flights above France during French ATC strike and mandates that French ATC Unions focus on settling disputes instead of striking.

The strikes in France have not affected travel to other countries. Germany, Austria, and Portugal all experienced a high number of cancellations as a result of ongoing strikes.

Frankfurt Airport also reported delays on March 27, following the example of Munich Airport which canceled its flights for March 26-27. Air travel was disrupted by the strike of transport workers who were demanding a raise in salaries and better working conditions.

Austrian airports also reported on the 27th of March that over 100 flights were cancelled, with the primary reason being strikes by employees demanding better wages amid increasing inflation.

The authorities warned travellers heading to Portugal for Easter that there could be delays. A strike by immigration officers is scheduled between April 6th and April 10th. The Portuguese Immigration and Border Service protested against certain aspects of the decision by the government to dissolve the service.

Source: schengenvisainfo.com