Airline passenger news and views

Reports today suggest that British tourists are facing holiday mayhem after airport workers in Spain threatened walkouts which could total nearly three weeks.

Unions announced 19 strike days in a move aimed at bringing the country’s tourism industry to its knees in a row over airport privatisation.

The industrial action was timed to coincide with the peak periods of Easter and summer, with strikes starting on April 20 and continuing into May, June and July.

The Spanish government had to declare a state of emergency for the first time in the country’s 33-year democracy to halt a wildcat strike by air traffic controllers just before Christmas.

Ryanair has already calculated it will have to cancel 300 flights for 57,000 passengers over Easter unless the strikes can be averted.

The airline’s boss Michael O’Leary, speaking during a visit to Madrid, called on the EU to strip airport staff of the right to strike. 

He said: ‘It’s unacceptable that Spanish airport workers with their se lfish strikes can hold an entire country to ransom.’

Three unions representing 12,500 ground staff employed by Spanish airports authority AENA are behind the move.

They plan to call walkouts on April 20, 21, 24, 25 and 30; this year, Good Friday falls on April 22. More strikes have been set for May, June and July.

Baggage handlers and fire crews would be among those expected to answer the strike call, which could bring many airports to a virtual standstill.

Spain was gearing up for a bumper tourist season after two bad years. Worried AENA president Juan Ignacio Lerma admitted: ‘A strike is the worst scenario. We will do everything we can to avoid it.

‘A strike would seriously damage the tourist sector at a time when the outlook for Easter and summer are very encouraging. I urge the unions to negotiate.’

Tourism is key to the Spanish economy, with the country receiving more than 44million visitors every year – 15million of them British.

Spain is also a major destination for bmi Baby, which links Spain to Birmingham, Manchester, East Midlands and Cardiff.

A spokesman for the airline said: ‘We urge the parties involved to resolve this dispute as a matter of urgency so that any disruption to our customers can be avoided.’

Travel analyst Bob Atkinson of www.travelsupermarket.com called the action ‘a potential nightmare’ which could affect hundreds of thousands of passengers.

He advised people heading to Spain on affected days to contact their holiday or flight providers, and warned that only holiday insurance booked before the strike dates were announced will offer protection for potential disruptions.

 

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