Air strikes and new border checks to cause travel chaos
IF you had planned to jet off today to catch the end of the Easter school break, you may just wish you had stayed at home.
In a double hit for thousands of holidaymakers trying to leave Britain today, strikes by French air traffic controllers and new border control checks threaten severe delays.
Air passengers face up to three days of disruption, with British Airways, easyJet, Ryanair and Flybe among the airlines forced to cancel dozens of flights.
And those travelling abroad by ferry or Eurotunnel face queues as exit checks are introduced at Britain’s ports. The change, which takes effect from today, means every passenger in a car or coach will have their passport scanned.
The walkout by France’s biggest air traffic controllers’ union SNCTA will begin at 5am today and run until 5am on Friday – with vast knock-on disruption expected.
Last night, easyJet, which flies to more than a dozen French cities, said it was cancelling 118 flights, including ten directly affecting the UK. BA warned of ‘ significant disruption’ and apologised for the cancellation of around a dozen return flights from Britain.
Flybe said it was cancelling 16 of today’s flights including services to Paris from Manchester, Birmingham and Exeter as well as some flights from Southampton. Ryanair said it was cancelling 250 of today’s flights, with more likely, branding the strike ‘grossly unfair’. Nearly a third involve the UK, although many are destinations outside of France hit by the knock-on effect.
A Ryanair spokesman said all affected customers have been contacted by email and text message and advised of their options – full refund, free transfer on to the next available flight or free transfer on to an alternatively routed flight.
The Civil Aviation Authority said passengers affected by the strike would not receive compensation because industrial action is classed as an ‘unforeseen circumstance’ outside the control of airlines. But they will be entitled to food, drink and, if necessary, hotel accommodation. In response to dire warnings that the introduction of border control checks would cause chaos, ministers have tried to lessen the impact by phasing the new rules in.
For the first month, all passports will be scanned but only a quarter of passport holders will have to have their details verified. By June, this will rise to 100 per cent.