Ryanair pilots strike 5 days before Christmas Paris towers Fears of holiday over New Year flight chaos over destinations.. industrial action

PARIS is the No1 choice for a New Year break among Irish holidaymakers.

And there’s a 121% increase in the popularity of the French capital since last year.

But plenty of people are trying to escape the cold snap by revealing they want to jet off to warmer climates too – with Port Louis, Mauritius, up there in the fourth most popular spot.

The research on where the public most want to ring in New Year comes from Kayak.ie, a travel search engine.

Coming in after Paris, Liverpool is the second most popular spot to celebrate the New Year with a 68% increase in popularity on last year.

Prague was also popular coming in third and Lisbon, Manchester and Malaga were also top choices in Ireland with increases in popularity of 53, 46 and 39% respectively on last year.

Kayak travel expert John-lee Saez said: “It’s no surprise that Paris, Liverpool and Prague make up the top three destinations for New Year’s celebrations for Irish revellers this year.

“With their flourishing artistic communities and social scenes they all have a lot to offer travellers looking for a quick European getaway.

“At Kayak we’re happy to use our data to help Irish holidaymakers make the best decision regarding their upcoming trips, and we also have great tools for inspiration like Explore, where you can input your budget, desired month of travel and flight time, and see matching destinations pop up for you on the world map”.

YESTERDAY

A STRIKE by Ryanair pilots is set to cause travel chaos for hundreds of thousands of people returning home for the Christmas holidays.

The one-day industrial action planned for December 20 has the potential to ground many of the carrier’s flights in and out of Ireland.

Members of the Irish Airline Pilots’ Association backed the strike overwhelmingly during secret ballots.

The dispute is about winning independent representation for workers in the company, trade union Impact said.

Although the number of employees involved in the strike is fewer than the total of Irish-based Ryanair pilots, the action will have impact because planes cannot legally or safely fly without a captain, the union added. Most of the pilots balloted are captains.

The Irish Travel Agents’ Association has warned the strike could cause chaos for travellers retuning home.

President Cormac Meehan said: “This industrial action could result in huge disruptions, in particular for families who may be returning home for Christmas or planning to holiday abroad.”

The action relates to 79 pilots directly employed by Ryanair and based in Dublin. An airline statement said: “Ryanair is surprised IALPA has threatened to disrupt Christmas week travel when IALPA’S own numbers confirm that it has the support of less than 28% of Ryanair’s over 300 Dublin pilots and when Ryanair’s Belfast, Cork and Shannon bases have already agreed these 20% pay deals.”

The airline has already confirmed any pilots in the capital who participate in this industrial action will be in breach of the Dublin pilots’ base agreement.

It is feared if the carrier takes disciplinary action against them it could lead to the dispute spreading.

Impact official Ashley Connolly said: “This dispute is solely about winning independent representation for pilot.

“Management’s failed negotiating model has let down shareholders and tens of thousands of passengers, whose flights were cancelled this year because company-controlled industrial relations proved incapable of recruiting and retaining enough pilots.”

This could result in disruptions for families returning home

CORMAC MEEHAN