Overview

• France’s main ATC union SNCTA has confirmed a national walkout from the morning of 7 October to the morning of 10 October, cutting capacity and affecting routes that traverse French airspace.
• Ryanair expects to be asked to cancel about 600 flights on the first two days, potentially impacting roughly 100,000 passengers, with most cancellations forecast on UK–Spain, Italy and Greece overflights.
• Chief executive Michael O’Leary estimates the action will cost Ryanair around £20 million and urges the European Commission and Eurocontrol to safeguard overflights during national strikes.
• The UK Department for Transport says each state controls its own airspace and notes airports have resilience plans, while airlines including easyJet and British Airways say they are monitoring the situation.
• The latest stoppage follows a postponed September action and comes after a 3–4 July strike that prompted about 1,500 cancellations and disrupted more than 1 million passengers.