Europe's news in English

COPY LINK

TRAVEL NEWS

Flights from southern Norway disrupted by airspace closure

Flights in and out of southern Norway will be delayed after the airspace over the south of the Nordic country was temporarily closed on Thursday morning.

Published: 25 April 2024 09:56 CEST

Pictured is an airport terminal in Norway.

Flights to and from southern Norway will be delayed by an earlier airspace closure. Pictured is an airport terminal in Norway. Photo by Isbjorn Getty Images

A technical fault closed Norway’s airspace on Thursday morning, with state-run airport Avinor attributing the issue to a technical problem at the Oslo air traffic control centre.

At around 6:30am, the air traffic in southern Norway was fully closed before partially reopening at 9am. Air traffic then fully reopened at 9:30am.

The closure led to many flights in and out of southern Norway being delayed. The delays will continue throughout the day even though the airspace has been fully reopened.

“Now the planes can go as normal. There will, of course, be major delays throughout the day,” Avinor press officer Monica Fasting told TV 2.

Avinor has advised travellers to follow the advice given to them by airlines.

“Do as normal if you do not receive any other message from your airline,” a press officer for Avinor told Norwegian newswire NTB.

Some flights were cancelled with passengers already aboard due to the disruption caused by the airspace closure.

READ MORE: What are your rights if your flight is delayed or cancelled in Norway?

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.

Become a Member to leave a comment.

Norwegian Air Shuttle pilots threaten summer strike

A mediation deadline of May 31st has been set with Norwegian Air Shuttle pilots, the Norwegian Pilot Union and the airline yet to agree on a package for wages and working conditions, business news site E24 reports.

The leader of the organisation representing pilots, Alf Hansen, said that there would be a “great danger of a strike” if the pilots’ demands were not met.

Hansen said that pilots were asking for a better work-life balance as part of the proposed collective bargaining agreement.

READ ALSO: What is a Norwegian collective bargaining agreement?

“We pilots have to be at work when most people want to go out and travel, but like others we also have to have a life with the family outside of work. Demands have therefore been put forward for a more even workload and a longer notification period for changes to the work programme,” he said.

“Through difficult periods and reconstruction in the company, we have contributed to growth and profits. Now is the time to close the pay gap for colleagues in the company who work at other bases in Europe. The company must realise that we are part of a European labour market and must be paid accordingly,” he added.

The Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise (NHO) would also be negotiating on behalf of the airline.

Norwegian has recovered from a difficult financial situation in recent years and was given the green light to complete the acquisition of the regional airline Widerøe at the end of last year.

During the airline’s last quarterly presentation, CEO Geir Karlsen said that the company hoped for a “record summer season.”

Url copied to clipboard!