Von der Leyen must protect flights says Ryanair

Ryanair called on Ursula von der Leyen, European Commission president, to protect flights through French skies as the country’s air traffic controllers prepared to strike on Friday.

French air traffic controllers plan their 64th stoppage so far this year on Friday October 13th, which is likely to disrupt flights between many of other EU states that travel through the country’s airspace.

Ryanair warns that passengers on flights between Germany, Spain, Italy, Ireland and Britain face needless cancellations as a result, even though they are not travelling to or from France.

“Despite Ryanair’s repeated calls on Ursula von der Leyen and her college of commissioners, they still have not taken any action to protect EU passengers from suffering needless disruptions during these air traffic control strikes,” said the airline.

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The airline wants the commission to ensure that France protect flights passing through its airspace between other EU states during strikes. Other countries, including Spain, Italy and Greece already do this.

France’s position and size means that its air traffic control strikes disrupt flights between many other EU countries that travel through its airspace, but do not land or take off there.

Strikes are more likely to hit these services, as French minimum service rules protect flights within the country during industrial action by air traffic controllers.

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Ryanair and other carriers have been demanding that the EU take control of overflights, a move that would not affect the workers’ right to strike, but which would protect journeys between other countries.

Last month the airline group, Europe’s biggest, delivered a petition to Ms von der Leyen with 1.8 million signatures, calling on the commission to keep EU skies open.

The airline said that she still had not acted to protect passengers “who are not even flying to or from France from suffering last-minute cancellations due to French air traffic control strikes, as they will this Friday”.