Ryanair is calling, in a strong tone, on the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, to urgently reform the European air traffic control (ATC) system in order to protect overflights during the upcoming strike of Slovenian air traffic controllers, on October 6-7.
As a result of the strike, the Slovenian air traffic control service will reduce its capacity by 50%, leading to delays and flight cancellations that will affect thousands of passengers.
The problem mainly concerns overflights in Slovenian airspace, such as flights from Warsaw to Rome or from Athens to Frankfurt.
Ryanair points out that Slovenian legislation does not protect overflights during national strikes, unlike countries such as Italy, Spain and Greece.
As Ryanair’s Communications Director Jade Kirwan points out, it is completely unacceptable that passengers are forced to suffer delays due to a strike that does not concern them.
The airline calls on the EU President to implement two key reforms: fully staffing national ATCs for the first wave of flights of the day with fines imposed in case of non-compliance, and protecting overflights during national strikes, ensuring the functioning of the Single Market.
Ryanair is urging passengers to visit the website “Air Traffic Control Ruined Your Flight” and call on the EU President to take immediate action, stressing that inaction “puts passengers and the reliability of European airspace at risk”.
Source: tornosnews.gr/en/
