Related news: Mallorca travel: Britons face Friday 13th Mallorca flight fright

At 6pm tonight France is going on strike and the national or general strike includes air traffic control which means that flights from the UK to Mallorca and other parts of the Balearics and Spain which pass through French airspace, which is the vast majority, face disruption.

The industrial action is due to start tonight (Thursday) and run until 6am local time on Saturday so it’s going to be a scary Friday 13th for many only days after a fire at Luton airport led to flights being cancelled to Mallorca.

Multiple unions plan strikes and demonstrations nationwide between October 12-14. The unions are demanding improved salaries, gender equality, and other social measures. It will be the first major nationwide strike action in the country in four months, since the final day of protests against the French government’s pension reform bill.

In a statement easyJet said : “We have been advised of a national strike in France starting 18:00 local time on Thursday 12th October to 06:00 Saturday 14th October. Air Traffic Control staff are joining the strike action and therefore like all airlines, our flights to and from French airports, as well as those flying in French airspace , could be affected.

“We expect that there will be delays and some disruption due to the industrial action, therefore we advise all customers to check the status of their flight on our flight tracker either on our mobile app or website: easyjet.com/en/flight-tracker

“Please also be aware that public transport services may be affected by the strike. We recommend all customers allow plenty of extra time to get to the airport and consider alternative transport options where possible. “Although this situation is outside of our control , we would like to reassure customers that we are doing all we can to minimise any disruption to our flights that may occur as a result of the strike action.

What happens if my flight is cancelled?

“We will contact affected customers directly via Email and SMS using the details provided at the time of booking and check in. “For cancelled flights only, we advise customers not to travel to the airport but to transfer their flights free of charge or take a refund by logging onto Manage Bookings on easyJet.com or using our Flight Tracker: easyjet.com/XXXX(yourflightnumber). “If you booked your flights through a travel agent or third party “If you made your booking through a travel agent, please contact your travel agency for help with your full travel plans. If you need further assistance and your agent is unable to help you, please contact our customer service team. Remember to let your tour operator or travel agent know about any changes you make.”

Ryanair has stated : “Due to the French ATC strike on Fri (13th Oct), we have been forced to cancel a small number of flights mainly overflying France. Affected passengers have been notified of their options to change flights (free of charge) or receive a full refund.

“ So far in 2023, there has been 64 days of ATC strikes (over 12 times more than in 2022) forcing airlines to cancel thousands of EU overflights from Germany, Spain, Italy, Ireland, and the UK, while France uses Minimum Service Laws to protect French flights. This is unfair. France (and all other EU states) should protect overflights during ATC strikes as they do in Spain, Italy and Greece, and cancel flights to/from the affected State.

“ Ryanair calls on the EU Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, to take urgent action to protect overflights and EU citizens’ freedom of movement during ATC strikes, and calls on passengers to join our call on the EU Commission by signing our ‘Protect Overflights: Keep EU Skies Open’ petition as over 1.8m fed up passengers have already done. “Ryanair sincerely apologises to affected passengers for any inconvenience as a result of these French ATC strike disruptions, which are beyond Ryanair’s control.”

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