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STRIKES

Italy’s ITA Airways cancels flights ahead of strike on Wednesday

Strike action at Italian airports is set to cause further disruption for passengers travelling to or from Italy on Wednesday, May 3rd, after a string of recent protests affected transport in the country.

Published: 2 May 2023 19:35 CEST
Italy's ITA Airways cancels flights ahead of strike on Wednesday
Passengers check an information screen at Rome's Fiumicino airport during a strike. Further strike action has been confirmed for Wednesday, May 3rd. (Photo by Andreas SOLARO / AFP)

A nationwide protest by Italian air traffic controllers, pilots and flight attendants from airline Vueling, and staff from Air Dolomiti will go ahead on Wednesday, Italian trade union Filt CGIL has confirmed, as Italian airline ITA announced flight cancellations on several routes.

The strike will last for four hours on Wednesday, from 1pm to 5pm, and is expected to hit airports across the country including in Rome and Milan.

The announcement of the latest in a long series of transport strikes in Italy came following delays to flights to and from Italian airports caused by the knock-on effects of air traffic control strikes in France over the long weekend.

Italy’s ITA Airways confirmed on Tuesday that it had already cancelled around 50 flights ahead of the strike action. (See a full list of the affected routes on the airline’s website here.)

READ ALSO: The transport strikes to expect in Italy this spring

ITA said in a statement that it would rebook “the largest possible number of travellers involved in the cancellations on the first available flights” and said that 90 percent of passengers affected “will be able to fly on the same day.”

Rome airport management company Aeroporti di Roma said “cancellations or delays could occur” and advised passengers due to fly from Fiumicino or Ciampino airports on Wednesday to contact their airline to check the status of their flight.

Italy’s civil aviation authority ENAC has published a list of flights that are guaranteed to go ahead during Wednesday’s strike. Under Italian law, flights scheduled to leave between 7-10am and 6-9pm are protected from strike action.

The Local will publish further updates as they become available.

You can keep up to date with the latest strike news from Italy HERE.

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STRIKES

Italy’s national train strike on Sunday postponed after government order

Italian Transport Minister Matteo Salvini on Thursday issued an injunction postponing a national rail strike planned for Sunday, May 19th, citing public order concerns due an overlap with the Emilia Romagna F1 Grand Prix.

Published: 17 May 2024 10:14 CEST
Italy's national train strike on Sunday postponed after government order

The transport ministry said in a statement the decision was “made especially in view of the important weekend for Formula 1 fans, as it coincides with the Made in Italy and Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix sporting event at the Imola Circuit”.

An estimated 200,000 people are expected to attend the event over the course of the weekend, the ministry added, meaning a strike “could have had significant repercussions and caused problems for public order and safety”.

The government’s statement referred to a “postponement”, indicating that the walkout will be allowed to go ahead at a later date.

As of Friday morning, PdM/PdB, the union that called the strike, had not yet issued a response.

Salvini has issued strike injunctions on several occasions since becoming transport minister in October 2022, including one limiting a planned 24-hour public transport strike in December to just four hours.

His actions have come under fire for what some have described as an “abuse of power”, with critics noting that striking is a right guaranteed under Italy’s constitution.

Keep up with the latest updates in The Local’s strike news section.

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