Italy airports strike: Brits warned of delays and cancellations by airlines including Jet2

UK holidaymakers travelling to Italy have been warned of potential cancellations due to strike action by Italy’s airport workers.
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Holidaymakers travelling to Italy have been warned of potential cancellations due to strike action at the country’s airports from Friday (May 19). Carriers have now issued advice to its customers as the strike could impact flights from Thursday (May 18) and over the weekend.

The strike action, which is due to take place for 24 hours, will be nationwide and will be led by ground handling services workers. The carriers most affected by this are EasyJet, Ryanair, Jet2 and ITA Airways.

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According to the Italian aviation union Cub Trasporti, the dispute centres on a six-year pay freeze. It claims airports are reducing salaries to offer airlines more competitive ground handling rates.

ITA Airways, which serves Heathrow and London City airports, has cancelled 112 domestic flights and one international flight (to Stuttgart, Germany). It has not issued any specific UK-based warnings.

EasyJet has since issued a warning ahead of the strike. In a statement, it said: “We have been advised of national strike action in Italy on 19 of May affecting critical airport ground handling services. We expect that there may be delays and some disruption due to the industrial action, therefore we advise all customers to check the status of their flight on our Flight Tracker.

“Although this situation is outside of our control, we would like to apologise to any affected passengers for the inconvenience caused. We are making every effort to get customers to their destination. Any customers whose flight is cancelled due to the strike will be contacted via email and SMS using the contact details provided at the time of booking and check in.”

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Ryanair has also urged customers to check its website or the Ryanair App. It said: “Due to the Italian handling strike on Friday, 19 May 2023, passengers flying to/from Italy may face cancellations. Affected customers will be notified via Email, SMS and PUSH notification and advised of their options as soon as possible.

“We sincerely apologise to our customer for any inconvenience caused as a result of this Italian handling strike which is entirely beyond our control.”

A screen shows cancelled flights at Milan Linate Airport in Milan, Italy on October 21, 2022 due to strike (Photo by Piero Cruciatti/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)A screen shows cancelled flights at Milan Linate Airport in Milan, Italy on October 21, 2022 due to strike (Photo by Piero Cruciatti/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
A screen shows cancelled flights at Milan Linate Airport in Milan, Italy on October 21, 2022 due to strike (Photo by Piero Cruciatti/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Meanwhile, Jet2 said in a statement that all of its flights are expected to operate as normal. It said: “In the event of any flight delays further information can be found [on the Jet2 website] by entering your flight number or route.

“As a reminder check in desks will close 40 minutes before your scheduled departure time. Rest assured, in the event of flight disruption our dedicated operations teams are always working hard behind the scenes at our UK-based HQ to get you on your way as soon as possible.”