France’s Civil Aviation Authority (DGAC) has asked airlines to reduce their flight schedules to and from some French airports today (June 6) as air traffic controllers are on strike.
The French ATC strike is affecting flights until 6am on Wednesday (June 7), amid a multi-sector day of industrial action in protest against the government’s pension reforms.
Air France said it plans to operate all its long-haul flights; all its flights to and from Paris Charles de Gaulle; and nearly seven out of 10 flights to and from Paris Orly [and] certain French airports.
It said: “Delays and last-minute cancellations cannot be ruled out. Customers affected by cancelled flights have been notified individually by SMS, e mail or via the Air France application.
“Air France regrets this strike action and is doing everything possible to limit the impact on its customers.”
More: Air traffic control strikes ‘more of a concern than e-gates failure’
Julia Lo Bue-Said, chief executive of the Advantage Travel Partnership, said: “The ongoing strikes by French ATC workers are an issue for many international airlines and the vast majority of flights have to travel through French airspace.
“We very much hope that the issues with French ATC do not have impact those travelling and our advice to those planning to travel over these strike days is to speak with their travel agent or check their flight status online before travelling to the airport.
“When it comes to booking holidays, we always advise booking with a travel agent as they are best placed to support customers throughout their trip from the point of booking to their return.
“Agents have an incredible amount of knowledge and experience in helping with travel disruption and searching for the best deals available.
“The industry has proved itself to be capable of putting robust contingency measures in place when necessary and we’re looking forward to people travelling this summer with very minimal disruption.”
Last week, Ryanair delivered its ‘Protect Overflights: Keep EU Skies Open’ petition to the EU Commission.
The petition collected more than 1.1 million signatures from passengers demanding that the EU Commission protect overflights and EU citizens’ freedom of movement during repeated ATC strikes.