A strike among French air traffic controllers has led to the cancellation of six flights from Copenhagen Airport to various destinations in France. The strike, which was announced by France’s largest air traffic controllers’ union, SNCTA, was initially scheduled to last from Thursday to Friday but has now been called off after new agreements on salary increases. According to Copenhagen Airport’s press department, the affected flights were planned to cities like Paris, Nice, and Marseille. Passengers affected by these cancellations are advised to contact the respective airlines for further information and rebooking.
The strike was announced after failed negotiations on wage increases, but on Tuesday SNCTA announced that they had reached an agreement with the French civil aviation authority, DGAC, regarding salary increases and other measures. This led to the strike notice being withdrawn. Despite the cancellation of the strike, disruptions are still expected in air traffic to and from France. Paris-Orly Airport and Charles de Gaulle in Paris will still experience significant cancellations, even though the original strike notices have been called off.
The situation has caused frustration among several aviation organizations, including Airlines for Europe (A4E), which criticizes the late withdrawal of the strike notice and the continued disruptions it causes. “Although the withdrawal of the strike notice may bring some relief to passengers, the fact that it happened last minute means there will still be significant disruptions in air traffic in France and parts of Europe tomorrow,” said Ourania Georgoutsakou, CEO of A4E.
Airlines had already canceled over 2,000 flights in connection with the announced strike, and it is still unclear whether the two smaller air traffic controllers’ unions that originally supported the strike will continue their actions.