Ryanair desires Brussels motion to maintain French airspace open

Flights crossing French airspace shouldn’t be topic to native air site visitors management strikes, argues Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary. He urges the European Union to place stress on France to maintain its airspace open to overflying plane.

“We respect the appropriate to strike, however freedom of motion for folks within the European Union is a good asset,” says O’Leary. “The European Fee has an obligation to guard it.” He handed over a petition with 1.1 million signatories in Brussels and hopes that the EU’s day-to-day administration will put stress on the French authorities. He additionally desires work interruptions of air site visitors management workers to be introduced a minimum of 72 hours prematurely.

In accordance with the Ryanair CEO, 216,000 passengers of the Irish low-cost airline suffered cancellations because of strikes by air site visitors controllers. Roughly 3.2 million Ryanair passengers additionally skilled delays. O’Leary believes that France ought to take an instance from Italy, Greece and Spain. In accordance with him, they do assure that ‘overflights’ can proceed.

“If this implies extra home or short-haul flights being canceled then so be it,” says O’Leary. He believes that enough alternative transport is feasible inside France, such because the high-speed prepare, whereas worldwide vacationers usually don’t have any different.

Vacation flyers within the Netherlands acknowledge the nuisance brought on by strikes amongst air site visitors controllers in France. “It’s a nation that you just all the time should cross if you go to southern Europe. You then should fly round”, says a spokeswoman for TUI. “You can’t keep away from having to cope with that, however that isn’t solely the case in France. It prices additional gas and time,” reviews a Transavia spokesperson.