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French strike disruption snares UK travellers

Mass protests in France spilled over to disrupt cross-Channel transport in Britain on Tuesday.

Published: 7 March 2023 12:44 CET

French strike disruption snares UK travellers

Travellers are seen at Gare du Nord railway station in Paris, the location of the Eurostar terminal, on March 7th amid fresh strikes against pension reform. (Photo by Christophe ARCHAMBAULT / AFP)

Dozens of flights and trains were cancelled and ferries delayed as French workers rallied against government pension reforms.

Air traffic controllers and rail staff in France were among those to walk out.

Budget carrier EasyJet axed at least 18 flights between Britain and France while British Airways cancelled at least 13, impacting passengers departing from hubs including Heathrow and Gatwick airports near London.

READ MORE: ‘France at a standstill’: What to expect from trains, planes and roads during Tuesday’s strikes

Air France withdrew four flights from service between Heathrow and Paris.

Eurostar, which runs the cross-Channel rail service, cancelled 16 of 26 trains scheduled between London and Paris, and a further six between the British capital and Brussels.

The company warned the fallout from the protests “could extend beyond” Tuesday.

Ferry passengers travelling between Dover and Calais were told to expect disruption, with sailings delayed by up to 65 minutes. P&O Ferries advised passengers to travel on another date.

You can keep up to date with all new strike information HERE.

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Ryanair cancels 300 flights set to fly over France due to strike

In a press release published on Wednesday, Ryanair announced that 300 of their flights had been cancelled due to a planned strike by French air traffic controllers (ATC).

“Even though it’s French ATC that are striking, most disrupted passengers are not flying to/from France but overfly French airspace en route to their destination (e.g., UK – Greece, Spain, Italy),” the company said.

According to Ryanair estimates, 50,000 passengers would be affected in some way.

The main union participating in the strike announced on Wednesday morning that it had reached a deal with management and would be calling off industrial action, but the announcement came too late and many flights had already been cancelled.

As a result, significant delays and widespread cancellations were still expected on Thursday.

READ MORE: ‘75% of flights cancelled’: Which French airports will be worst affected by Thursday’s disruption?

Why are overflights affected?

The overflights pass through French airspace on their way to another country, and they make up a significant percentage of the flights handled by French air traffic controllers on a daily basis.

During strikes by French air traffic controllers, overflights are likely to be delayed or diverted as airlines seek alternatives routes that go around France, rather than over it. Often, there are also cancellations, as is the case for Ryanair.

Can I still get a refund due to a delay or cancellation of an overflight?

In terms of compensation, it makes little difference whether your flight is to/from France or simply over it, as EU compensation rules apply to all flights that either arrive at or depart from an airport in the EU/Schengen zone, or are operated by an EU-registered carrier.

Find full details on your rights and how to claim refunds HERE.

Are there plans to protect overflights?

Ryanair has been pushing for greater overflight protection for a long time, and they made several calls for change during the 2023 protests against pension reform when a number of air traffic control strikes were called.

READ MORE: Cancellations and compensation: How French strikes affect European flights

In their Wednesday memo, the company called again for the EU Commission to take action to protect overflights.

“French air traffic controllers are free to go on strike, that’s their right, but we should be cancelling French flights, not flights leaving Ireland, going to Italy, or flights from Germany to Spain or Scandinavia to Portugal.

“The European Commission under Ursula von der Leyen has failed for 5 years to take any action to protect overflights and the single market for air travel. We’re again calling on her to take action to protect overflights which will eliminate over 90 percent of these flight cancellations,” Ryanair’s CEO Michael O’Leary said in the memo.

The company has also released a petition to ‘‘Protect Overflights: Keep EU Skies Open’, which has over 2.1m signatures.

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