British Airways parent company International Airlines Group and Ryanair are submitting a complaint to the European Commission regarding air traffic control strikes that "are destroying European air traffic and having a huge impact on consumers," according to IAG CEO Willie Walsh.
The Airlines for Europe association said 2018 is on track to be one of the worst years ever for ATC strikes; due to such strikes, A4E members have canceled about 5,000 flights year to date, and they delayed 39,000 flights in May alone. Since 2005, the European Union has seen 357 ATC strikes, and more than 70 percent of those were in France, according to the European Commission. A report by PwC estimated that ATC strikes between 2010 and 2017 dealt an economic hit of 13.4 billion euros.
"These disruptions are unacceptable, and we call on the governments and the EU Commission to take urgent and decisive action to ensure that ATC providers are fully staffed and that overflights are not affected when the national strikes take place, as they repeatedly do in France," Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary said. "Europe's ATC providers are approaching the point of meltdown with hundreds of flights being canceled daily either because of ATC strikes or because Europe's ATC don't have enough staff."
IAG and Ryanair's complaint will say that the failure to protect flights passing over France violates EU law. A4E also has been working with the French government and EU parliamentarians to find a solution, including proposing a mandatory 72-hour notification period for ATC employees who intend to strike.