UPDATED: Spain's summer strike calendar - The days you should avoid flying
Following the announcement that Ryanair and EasyJet staff have added further strike days in August and September 2022, we list the dates that travellers looking to fly to and from Spain may want to avoid booking tickets for.
Strike action by Spain-based crew working for Ryanair and EasyJet will continue throughout the months of August and September, unions representing staff for Europe’s two biggest low-cost airlines have confirmed.
Irish low-cost airline Ryanair cancelled 10 flights and delayed 111 more in Spain on Monday as cabin crew staff resumed strike action over pay and working conditions, union officials said.
Barcelona, Spain's second-busiest airport, was the worst hit, with eight flights cancelled as of 1pm, the USO union said in a statement.
But the union complained that the strike was not having a greater impact, hitting out at the government for compelling the airline to operate around 80 percent of its flights and forcing most crew to go to work, USO spokesman Pau Ibarzabal said.
"We believe it is abusive and almost violates our right to strike," he said.
Ryanair cabin crew in Spain began a series of rolling strikes on June 24th, the day when many European schools started breaking up for the summer.
The USO and SITCPLA unions initially called for six days of walkouts, but they later decided to extend the industrial action until July 28th.
The two unions then called a third wave of 24-hour work stoppages from August 8th until January 7th, 2023, arguing that Ryanair had refused "to engage in any dialogue".
The carrier, for its part, has said that the strikes have had little impact on its activity in Spain, where it operates more than 650 routes.
Ryanair is the only international company in Spain not to have a collective agreement, unions say.
A Ryanair cabin crew member holds a placard reading "Ryanair, low salaries made simple" as she protests at Terminal 2 of El Prat airport in Barcelona on June 24, 2022. (Photo by Pau BARRENA / AFP)
EasyJet strikes
EasyJet cabin crew called off their strike after reaching an agreement on July 28th, however, one day later the low-cost airline's pilots announced further stoppages and a strike of their own.
This time the strike was called by Sepla, the Spanish pilot's union which announced the walkout over the company's refusal to recover the conditions the pilots had before the pandemic, as well as their refusal to negotiate a second collective agreement
READ ALSO: What are your rights if flights are delayed or cancelled?
Málaga, Barcelona and Palma de Mallorca’s airports have reportedly been the most affected by Ryanair and EasyJet flight cancellations thus far.
Many EasyJet and Ryanair passengers who have already booked flights to and from Spain for August will no doubt want to know with plenty of notice if their flight will be cancelled, something that is not possible to know in most cases until the airline emails or texts them.
So far, the stoppages by Ryanair and EasyJet staff have not meant that absolutely all their flights to and from Spain have been cancelled, but dozens of scheduled flights have indeed not taken off and hundreds more have suffered delays on these previous strike days.
Dozens of EasyJet flights have been cancelled so far, even though the airline's management says it intends to operate all of them. (Photo by Pau BARRENA / AFP)
For international flights, the situation is more complicated, especially for Ryanair passengers with scheduled flights from Belgium, Italy, France and Portugal, as the low-cost airline’s cabin crew in those countries have also joined the strikes.
For those of you who have booked a Ryanair or Easyjet flight to and/or from Spain for August or September, or those who are considering doing so, the following is a breakdown of all the scheduled strike days by cabin crew for both airlines for the coming weeks.
Ryanair strike days
August 8th - 11th
August 15th - 18th
August 22nd - 25th
August 29th - September 1st
September 5th - 8th
September 12th - 15th
September 19th - 22nd
September 26th - 29th
It's possible to use Ryanair’s flight tracker to check on the status of your upcoming flight, but you’re unlikely to get accurate information if done far in advance.
EasyJet strike days
Friday August 12th
Saturday August 13th
Sunday August 14th
Friday August 19th
Saturday August 20th
Sunday August 21st
Saturday August 27th
Sunday August 28th
Monday August 29th
You can also use EasyJet’s flight tracker here to find out if your flight is going ahead.
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Strike action by Spain-based crew working for Ryanair and EasyJet will continue throughout the months of August and September, unions representing staff for Europe’s two biggest low-cost airlines have confirmed.
Irish low-cost airline Ryanair cancelled 10 flights and delayed 111 more in Spain on Monday as cabin crew staff resumed strike action over pay and working conditions, union officials said.
Barcelona, Spain's second-busiest airport, was the worst hit, with eight flights cancelled as of 1pm, the USO union said in a statement.
But the union complained that the strike was not having a greater impact, hitting out at the government for compelling the airline to operate around 80 percent of its flights and forcing most crew to go to work, USO spokesman Pau Ibarzabal said.
"We believe it is abusive and almost violates our right to strike," he said.
Ryanair cabin crew in Spain began a series of rolling strikes on June 24th, the day when many European schools started breaking up for the summer.
The USO and SITCPLA unions initially called for six days of walkouts, but they later decided to extend the industrial action until July 28th.
The two unions then called a third wave of 24-hour work stoppages from August 8th until January 7th, 2023, arguing that Ryanair had refused "to engage in any dialogue".
The carrier, for its part, has said that the strikes have had little impact on its activity in Spain, where it operates more than 650 routes.
Ryanair is the only international company in Spain not to have a collective agreement, unions say.
EasyJet strikes
EasyJet cabin crew called off their strike after reaching an agreement on July 28th, however, one day later the low-cost airline's pilots announced further stoppages and a strike of their own.
This time the strike was called by Sepla, the Spanish pilot's union which announced the walkout over the company's refusal to recover the conditions the pilots had before the pandemic, as well as their refusal to negotiate a second collective agreement
READ ALSO: What are your rights if flights are delayed or cancelled?
Málaga, Barcelona and Palma de Mallorca’s airports have reportedly been the most affected by Ryanair and EasyJet flight cancellations thus far.
Many EasyJet and Ryanair passengers who have already booked flights to and from Spain for August will no doubt want to know with plenty of notice if their flight will be cancelled, something that is not possible to know in most cases until the airline emails or texts them.
So far, the stoppages by Ryanair and EasyJet staff have not meant that absolutely all their flights to and from Spain have been cancelled, but dozens of scheduled flights have indeed not taken off and hundreds more have suffered delays on these previous strike days.
For those of you who have booked a Ryanair or Easyjet flight to and/or from Spain for August or September, or those who are considering doing so, the following is a breakdown of all the scheduled strike days by cabin crew for both airlines for the coming weeks.
Ryanair strike days
August 8th - 11th
August 15th - 18th
August 22nd - 25th
August 29th - September 1st
September 5th - 8th
September 12th - 15th
September 19th - 22nd
September 26th - 29th
It's possible to use Ryanair’s flight tracker to check on the status of your upcoming flight, but you’re unlikely to get accurate information if done far in advance.
EasyJet strike days
Friday August 12th
Saturday August 13th
Sunday August 14th
Friday August 19th
Saturday August 20th
Sunday August 21st
Saturday August 27th
Sunday August 28th
Monday August 29th
You can also use EasyJet’s flight tracker here to find out if your flight is going ahead.
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