By Tarek Salame
What started in French airspace is now being felt on Irish tarmac. On July 3, French strikes grounded 16 flights in and out of Dublin 鈥 destinations like Paris, Biarritz, and Murcia among them. No walkout happened in Ireland. But for anyone flying that day, it may as well have. There was no strike in Ireland, but that didn鈥檛 matter much. Flights crossing French skies got delayed or diverted, causing chaos back in Dublin. The fallout was never going to stay confined to France. Ryanair slashed more than 170 flights across its network 鈥 not because of local trouble, but because so many routes pass through French skies. It鈥檚 a reminder of just how vulnerable air travel has become, affecting more than 30,000 passengers.
Irish travellers hoping for a smooth getaway to Spain or Italy are finding themselves unexpectedly grounded. What began as a strike in another country has quickly spread to their departure gate delays. This isn鈥檛 the first strike and will not likely be the last. What鈥檚 becoming clear is just how dependent Ireland is on air conditioner corridors that it doesn鈥檛 control.
What happened in Dublin
The two-day French strike also left its mark on Dublin. By the time July 3 rolled around, Dublin had cancelled sixteen flights. Half were arrivals, half departures 鈥 most linked to southern Europe, and nearly all tangled in someone else鈥檚 dispute. According to a spokesperson from the Dublin Airport Authority, this included eight departures and eight arrivals, mainly serving routes to and from Paris, Nice, Biarritz, and Murcia.
Many weren鈥檛 even flying to France. Just passing through 鈥 changing planes in Paris or Nice 鈥 but still left stranded. A lot of the cancelled flights weren鈥檛 even heading to France. They were just passing through 鈥 connecting to Italy or Spain 鈥 but once the airspace shuts, everything downstream collapses.
While Belfast City Airport and Cork Airport reported no cancellations, the officials warned that knock-on effects were possible if the disruption extended into the weekend. Dublin Airport urges all passengers flying to Mainland Europe to check with their Airline for the latest updates.
What passengers can expect
For travellers who were caught in the fallout, the rules will not always be as clear as they should be. EU rules don鈥檛 guarantee payouts. If your delay came from an air traffic strike, airlines might not owe you compensation, even if you miss a connection, which includes Air Traffic Control strikes.
However, airlines must still offer support. That means you鈥檙e entitled to:
A full refund or rerouting at the earliest opportunity.
Accommodation and meals if delays stretch overnight.
Assistance at the airport, including updates and rebooking options 鈥 though in practice, many passengers report relying more on travel apps than airline desks.
July and August, being the peak months for Spanish, Greek, and Italian holidays, expect further delays as the union dispute simmers, with no long-term fixes currently in place.
Ryanair鈥檚 call for EU intervention
As the strike neared, Ryanair pre-emptively cancelled 170 flights scheduled for Friday, July 4, and Saturday, July 5, affecting over 30,000 passengers across Europe. The airline warned that not only would direct flights to France be affected, but so would those merely passing through French airspace, including many between Ireland, Spain, and the UK, and to Greece.
On Thursday, July 3, Ryanair submitted a formal complaint to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, urging the EU to take 鈥渦rgent action鈥. The airline asked for:
Air traffic control services to be fully staffed during key departure windows.
Legal protection for overflights to prevent future mass cancellations when domestic strikes occur in France.
CEO Michael O鈥橪eary described the disruption as 鈥渁bundantly unfair鈥 to European families heading on holiday. The European Commission has not yet issued a response.
Some airlines have begun rerouting flights around airspace they now see as risky. It鈥檚 not a sustainable fix, but with July and August packed with holiday traffic from Ireland and the UK, even a 24-hour shutdown can wreck a family鈥檚 long-planned break.
Currently, flyers are struggling to navigate a European sky that feels increasingly unreliable. One country鈥檚 strike can halt planes across half the continent. And unless there鈥檚 a broader response soon, passengers will keep paying the price 鈥 even on flights that never touch French soil.