Ryanair braced Friday for what unions warn will be the biggest strike in the airline’s history — although the carrier played down fears of disruption for travellers.
The Dublin-based carrier said it would have to cancel nearly 250 flights amid walk-outs in Germany, Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain.
But the company insisted the vast majority of its 2,400 normally scheduled flights would be unaffected by “these unnecessary strikes”.
“We find this strike… unreasonable and somewhat out of sync with the progress we thought we were having,” Ryanair COO Peter Bellew said in a conference call with journalists on Thursday.
Ryanair said in a statement that the vast majority of its 2,400 flights on Friday “will be unaffected by these unnecessary strikes and will operate as scheduled”.
Affected customers received email and text message notifications on Tuesday to advise them of cancellations and options, Ryanair said.
Trade unions have claimed that Friday’s 24-hour stoppage will be the biggest strike in the Irish carrier’s history.
“By not cancelling enough flights for tomorrow’s strike, Ryanair’s irresponsible behaviour could create tensions and insecurity for all airport staff, Ryanair and the passengers concerned,” the Belgian CNE union said in a statement.
Ryanair staff have been seeking higher wages and an end to the practice whereby many have been working as independent contractors without the benefits of staff employees.