Thousands of passengers hit by French air traffic control strikes
Ryanair said the strike had affected not only its flights to and from France, but also aircraft flying over French airspace to destinations including the UK, Ireland, Spain and Greece.Its chief executive, Michael O'Leary, accused the air traffic controllers of "holding European families to ransom"."It makes no sense and is abundantly unfair on EU passengers going on holidays," he complained, calling on European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to take "urgent action" to ensure minimum service levels during strikes and to protect flights going through French airspace from domestic industrial action. France's civil aviation authority, DGAC, asked airlines to reduce flight schedules at several airports across the country. Disruption is expected to worsen at French airports on Friday, with 40% fewer flights from the Paris airports at Charles de Gaulle, Orla and Beauvais.The strike was called by the UNSA-ICNA union, which cited staffing shortages, management issues and the planned introduction of a controversial clock-in system for controllers among its concerns. Talks with the DGAC earlier this week failed to resolve the dispute.Airlines for Europe (A4E), the continent's leading aviation body, described the strike as "intolerable", warning that it would severely disrupt travel plans at the height of the holiday season. EasyJet, another low-cost carrier affected by the disruption, expressed "deep disappointment" and urged a resolution.Ryanair said on Wednesday it also had been hit by the recent conflict in the Middle East and had cancelled more than 800 flights last month.Despite the cancellations, the airline said it still operated more than 109,000 flights in June, indicating that fewer than 1% of flights were affected.
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Daily Record
9 hours ago
- Daily Record
Ryanair traveller 'fuming' that £16.99 flight doesn't have basic amenity
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Daily Mirror
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Ryanair traveller 'fuming' after making little-known discovery about £16.99 flight
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Glasgow Times
10 hours ago
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Widow in tears as Ryanair refuse to refund dead husband
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I filled out the form to get a refund for Colin and the caters. They authorised part of the refund but they didn't send it. "I sent the death certificate and proof I am the will executor. They said a refund would come in the next 24-48 hours. "They said their policy is to refund only Colin's ticket, not the carers'. But I've not had it, there's nothing. "I emailed them to say I haven't received the refund and it's been over 48 hours. They said that they have to speak with the booker. "My sister contacted them and said the booker is dead. It's so upsetting and trivial. I told them back in April that he passed so there should be no reason why they can't refund it. "I can't get in contact with these carers because the contract ended, but they didn't pay for the tickets, Colin paid for the tickets. "They said 'I can't disclose any information with someone not tied to the booking', even though they were discussing it with me in the past. 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We've dealt with so much because of his disability. Things are always that little bit tougher, harder." Colin was paralysed from the chest down after an accident in 2010 and developed a condition called autonomic dysreflexia, which meant his blood pressure could soar and cause a stroke if not treated - which is what led to his brain bleed. Yvonne said: "Colin had an accident 14 years ago, a month before our youngest was born. It's just constant battling and I feel tired, I feel drained, sometimes I want to just ignore it but my sister says 'you're not ignoring this, they stole from you.' "It's the lack of empathy, lack of understanding, it's not a box-standard person going on a flight, it's a disabled person. "If you had a family member who died, surely you would think it's all cancelled." Recommended reading: A Ryanair spokesperson said: "Mr Shields was due to travel from Edinburgh to Venice on 16 Sep' 25 but passed away prior to this flight. 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