Airports in the popular Balearic Islands are facing another day of chaos, having recorded 85 cancelled flights and widespread delays as a result of the French air traffic controllers’ strike. As the strike enters its second day, airport authority Aena has said that 69 connections to Majorca’s Palma airport were cancelled on Friday (July 4), while Ibiza has seen a dozen cancelled and six in Menorca.
The travel nightmare comes at the start of a weekend in which the archipelago’s airports are scheduled to operate a total of 4,895 flights. The air traffic controllers’ strike in France was called by Unsa-Icna for Thursday and Friday and has seen the cancellation of 40% of flights at three Paris airports, including Paris-Charles de Gaulle, as well as a 50% reduction in activity at Nice, according to data from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGAC) and local media site Le Figaro.
“Despite […] preventive measures, significant disruptions and delays are expected at all French airports,” DGAC warned in a statement. In the capital, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Orly and Beauvais have all been affected, while the airports of Lyon, Marseille, Montpellier, and Corsica’s Ajaccio, Bastia, Calvi and Figari will see 30% fewer operations.
The striking air traffic controllers are calling for better working conditions and protesting staff shortages and inadequate equipment.
The A4E airline association, which includes Ryanair, Air France, KLM, Lufthansa, British Airways, and EasyJet, has strongly condemned the strike. It points out that more than 1,500 flights have been cancelled over the two days, affecting almost 300,000 passengers.
“Already in 2025, French air traffic control has proven to be one of the weak points of the European system, recording some of the worst delay records in Europe,” the association warned.
The news comes as low-cost airline Ryanair was forced to cancel more than 170 flights because of the strikes. The Irish carrier said the cancellations on Thursday and Friday will affect flights to and from France, and also flights over the country to destinations such as the UK, Greece, Spain and Ireland.
Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary renewed calls on EU Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, to take “urgent action” to reform European Union air traffic control (ATC) services in light of the disruption, which comes at the start of the European summer holidays.
933 flights were cancelled on Thursday, accounting for around 10% of all scheduled flights in France, according to the DGAC. Airports like Charles de Gaule, Nice and Orly typically handle around 350,000 passengers every day during the peak summer season.