EU warns of record European flight delays this summer 

Summer flight delays could reach record levels due to air traffic control staff shortages, strikes, fires and high demand for travel, The European Union has warned.

 

EU officials reportedly said on Wednesday that the air traffic control system is operating at its limits due to staff shortages and a significant increase in demand for flights following the Covid-19 pandemic.

 

"Last year we had the worst summer ever in terms of delays and cancellations. This year will be very similar," a senior EU official was quoted as saying.

 

Around 37,000 flights operate in European airspace on the busiest days - roughly the limit of air traffic controllers’ capacity, the same official added, according to the Financial Times.

 

Eurocontrol, the body responsible for air traffic control in Europe, said in April that air traffic this year was 5% higher compared to the same period in 2024. Similarly, delays in air traffic management were also 5% higher.

 

"The lack of air traffic control capacity to cope with demand is expected to cause significant delays" in nine countries, including France, Germany, Greece and Spain, which are some of the most popular tourist destinations in the region.

 

The situation is also being exacerbated by strikes by air traffic controllers, especially in France. 

 

Strikes by French air traffic controllers last week over outdated equipment and staff shortages, caused disruptions to about 4,000 flights across the EU, Eurocontrol said. 

 

“Last week was strongly impacted by air traffic control (ATC) industrial action between 2-5 July 2025, leading to severe disruption for passengers, airlines and airports,” the organisation said.

 

“There were 3,343 fewer flights to/from French airports compared to the previous week – all of which were cancelled as a result of the French ATC industrial action; additional flights might have been cancelled across Europe without the Eurocontrol network manager being notified.

 

“A total of 63,440 flights were delayed by air traffic flow management (ATFM) restrictions, an average of 9,063 flights a day and 26% of all flights. 

 

“The main reason for the increase is related to French air traffic control industrial action.”

 

EU transport commissioner Apostolos Tzitzikostas said the bloc is operating with reduced airspace due to the war in Ukraine, and this, coupled with a shortage of controllers, "threatens to overburden the air network and disappoint passengers”.

 

With airports "more congested than ever before", "Europe cannot afford chaos in the skies", he added.

 

Jet2 chief executive Steve Heapy told investors on Wednesday that the strikes had caused "a lot of customers to be concerned”.

 

Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary issued an open letter to European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen on Tuesday calling on her to quit if she fails to take action to protect the single market for flights over Europe during French ATC strikes.

 

Europe’s largest airline was forced to cancel 1,500 flights affecting 270,000 passengers due to French ATC strikes last Thursday and Friday.

 

Ryanair argued that “90% of these flight cancellations would have been avoided if overflights over France were protected during French ATC strikes. 

 

“Despite repeated calls from the airline industry, commission president Ursula von der Leyen has refused to take any action to protect and defend the single market for air travel during French ATC strikes.”

 

Airlines are calling on Brussels to complete the ‘Single European Sky’ project, an initiative that would allow airlines to fly the most direct route possible within the EU, rather than following diversions due to fragmented air traffic control.