Ryanair cancels 190 flights as big strike day approaches
Ryanair has cancelled 190 flights for this Friday because of cabin crew strikes in six countries, described by unions as the biggest strike ever to hit the airline.
Ryanair, which had previously played down the impact of the strike, said it has sent emails and texts to the 30,000 affected clients.
It described the action as an ‘unnecessary strike by a tiny minority of cabin crew in Spain, Belgium, Holland, Portugal, Italy and Germany’.
Ryanair claimed in a statement the strikes were being partly led by staff from rival airlines.
"In Spain, a Norwegian cabin crew member in Alicante is driving the strike, in Portugal a TAP cabin crew is calling for strikes without the support of our Portuguese cabin crew, and in Italy where Ryanair yesterday signed a CLA agreement with the three main cabin crew unions, this threatened strike has been called by a tiny union which has no recognition or support among our Italian cabin crew."
Ryanair’s Kenny Jacobs said: "We sincerely apologise to those customers affected by these unnecessary strikes on Friday, which we have done our utmost to avoid, given that we have already offered these unions recognition agreements, Collective Labour Agreements, and a move to local contracts/law in 2019.
"These repeated unnecessary strikes are damaging Ryanair’s business and our customer confidence at a time when oil prices are rising strongly, and if they continue, it is inevitable that we will have to look again at our capacity growth this winter and in summer 2019.
"We hope these unions will see common sense and work with us to finalise agreements for the benefit of our pilots and cabin crew over the coming weeks without further disrupting our customers or our flights.
"When we can successfully do deals with unions in Ireland, the UK, Germany and Italy, why are some unions in Belgium, Holland and Spain not doing similar deals?"
Ryanair has come under fire for insisting it will not be paying out compensation to affected passengers, despite the CAA saying it should.
Rory Boland, Which? travel editor, said: "These cancellations mean more travel chaos, more unnecessary disruption and more holiday plans in tatters for 30,000 Ryanair passengers – when will this airline finally do right by its customers?
"The airline must now immediately arrange alternative flights or provide a full refund and pay out compensation to those affected – including the many people still waiting for the money they’re owed from its shambolic summer of cancellations."
Lisa
Lisa joined Travel Weekly nearly 25 years ago as technology reporter and then sailed around the world for a couple of years as cruise correspondent, before becoming deputy editor. Now freelance, Lisa writes for various print and web publications, edits Corporate Traveller’s client magazine, Gateway, and works on the acclaimed Remembering Wildlife series of photography books, which raise awareness of nature’s most at-risk species and helps to fund their protection.
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