By Elizabeta Ranxburgaj Joshua Whorms
Ryanair has been forced to cancel 170 flights disrupting the travel plans of over 30,000 passengers. It comes as nationwide air traffic controller strike cause travel chaos in France. The airline stated: “In addition to flights to/from France being canceled, this strike will also affect all French overflights.” The French air traffic control union announced its workers would go on strike on July 3 and 4 due to worker battling issues such as understaffing, burnout, and overwork. The country’s civil aviation authority – DGAC –requested the airlines cut flights to Paris airports by 40% during the strike and cancel up to half of flights to Nice Airport, along with Bastia and Calvi airports in Corsica. Paris airports, including Charles de Gaulle, Paris Beauvais, and Orly, were ordered to cancel a quarter of flights, reports the Mirror . Michael O’Leary, Ryanair’s CEO, has called on the European Commission president to reform the EU’s air traffic controller services, stating: “Once again European families are held to ransom by French Air Traffic Controllers going on strike.” France’s air traffic control union initiated the strike due to deepening concerns about understaffing, burnout, and employees being overworked. “It is not acceptable that overflights over French airspace en route to their destination are being cancelled/delayed as a result of yet another French ATC strike. It makes no sense and is abundantly unfair on EU passengers and families going on holidays,” O’Leary added. The Daily Star previously reported on the an Irish family has voiced their frustration after alleging Ryanair wrongly told them they needed a visa to travel from the UK to Ireland. Christina Finn and her husband, Cameron, were left stranded at Stansted Airport after attending a CBeebies event in London with their young son. The couple had flown without any hitches from Belfast to London on Friday, but ran into problems when trying to return home. Christina explained: “We had flown to London on Friday morning from Belfast for a meeting with the BBC, and we were to fly home from London to Dublin and then get the bus up to Belfast as that was the cheapest option, and it is something we would do all the time.” Their journey took a turn for the worse when they encountered technical issues while trying to check-in online, which Christina initially assumed were due to her mobile phone. Stuck with their poorly five-month-old baby who needs regular medication, Christina stressed the importance of getting back home promptly, reports the Mirror .