Paris – Saba:
Around 40% of flights were canceled on Thursday at all Paris airports, forcing tens of thousands of passengers to rearrange their travel plans during the peak summer season.
The disruptions stem from a strike by French air traffic controllers demanding better working conditions.
The disruptions began affecting airports across France on Wednesday and intensified on Thursday. The National Civil Aviation Authority requested airlines to cancel 40% of their flights at Paris-serving airports—Charles de Gaulle, Orly, and Beauvais—half of their flights in Nice, and 30% in Marseille, Lyon, and several other cities.
Despite preemptive cancellations, the authority warned in a statement that "delays and widespread disruptions are expected at all French airports."
Ryanair was among the airlines reporting significant disruptions, stating in a release that it had canceled over 400 flights, affecting 70,000 passengers. The airline added that the strike impacts all flights passing through French airspace, as well as traffic to and from French airports, urging the EU to reform air traffic control regulations.
One of the two unions leading the strike, UNSA-ICNA, stated that staffing levels are insufficient to handle the surge in air travel, while inflation has eroded wages. The unions are also protesting new reform measures aimed at tightening oversight of their work.
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