Flight operations across France continued to feel the after-shocks of a 48-hour air-traffic-controller (ATC) strike that ran from 9 to 10 February. According to passenger-rights specialist AirHelp, some 180 flights were cancelled and hundreds more delayed after the country’s three major ATC unions—SNCTA, UNSA-ICNA and USAC-CGT—walked out over staffing and retirement-replacement rules. The civil-aviation regulator DGAC ordered airlines to cut schedules by up to 50 % at Paris-Orly and 30 % at Marseille-Provence, yet bottlenecks still rippled into 11 February.
Domestic links and intra-European services operated by Air France, easyJet, Ryanair, British Airways and Iberia were hardest hit, forcing carriers to reroute some passengers onto rail or longer hub-and-spoke itineraries. Long-haul connections were less affected but still suffered missed connections as aircraft and crews went out of sequence. Forward-bookings data suggest that more than 28,000 business travellers saw itineraries disrupted.
If strike-driven rerouting means you suddenly need a different visa—say, to connect through a non-Schengen hub—VisaHQ’s specialists can step in quickly, securing the right travel documents and advising on entry rules. Their online platform (https://www.visahq.com/france/) streamlines applications, tracks status in real time and can even arrange courier pickup, keeping unplanned paperwork from compounding ATC-related delays.
![French Air-Traffic-Controller Strike Cancels 180 Flights and Signals Easter Action]()
Unions warned that unless replacement-hire guarantees are written into the 2026 budget, further strikes could coincide with the Easter school-holiday peak in late March. Multinational mobility teams should therefore build extra slack into spring travel and monitor DGAC notices, which are typically issued 48 hours before each strike day. Companies with posted workers rotating through French sites may also want to revisit “force-majeure” clauses in client contracts to avoid penalties if technicians arrive late.
The strike highlighted France’s chronic exposure to ATC labour disputes: despite accounting for just 15 % of European airspace, French walkouts caused 30 % of all EU ATC delay minutes in 2025, according to Eurocontrol. Airlines continue to lobby Brussels for a minimum-service rule that would allow overflights to bypass striking sectors—an idea Paris opposes on sovereignty grounds.
For now, travellers should expect rolling industrial action to remain a fixture of the French mobility landscape. Advising staff to choose early-morning departures, maintain flexible tickets and register with airline alert apps can limit the impact. Employers should also remember that EU261 compensation rules do not apply when cancellations are announced more than 14 days in advance, making proactive re-booking essential.
Domestic links and intra-European services operated by Air France, easyJet, Ryanair, British Airways and Iberia were hardest hit, forcing carriers to reroute some passengers onto rail or longer hub-and-spoke itineraries. Long-haul connections were less affected but still suffered missed connections as aircraft and crews went out of sequence. Forward-bookings data suggest that more than 28,000 business travellers saw itineraries disrupted.
If strike-driven rerouting means you suddenly need a different visa—say, to connect through a non-Schengen hub—VisaHQ’s specialists can step in quickly, securing the right travel documents and advising on entry rules. Their online platform (https://www.visahq.com/france/) streamlines applications, tracks status in real time and can even arrange courier pickup, keeping unplanned paperwork from compounding ATC-related delays.
Unions warned that unless replacement-hire guarantees are written into the 2026 budget, further strikes could coincide with the Easter school-holiday peak in late March. Multinational mobility teams should therefore build extra slack into spring travel and monitor DGAC notices, which are typically issued 48 hours before each strike day. Companies with posted workers rotating through French sites may also want to revisit “force-majeure” clauses in client contracts to avoid penalties if technicians arrive late.
The strike highlighted France’s chronic exposure to ATC labour disputes: despite accounting for just 15 % of European airspace, French walkouts caused 30 % of all EU ATC delay minutes in 2025, according to Eurocontrol. Airlines continue to lobby Brussels for a minimum-service rule that would allow overflights to bypass striking sectors—an idea Paris opposes on sovereignty grounds.
For now, travellers should expect rolling industrial action to remain a fixture of the French mobility landscape. Advising staff to choose early-morning departures, maintain flexible tickets and register with airline alert apps can limit the impact. Employers should also remember that EU261 compensation rules do not apply when cancellations are announced more than 14 days in advance, making proactive re-booking essential.
