Following an air transport union planned work stoppage two days after a train strike that crippled rail service, hundreds of flights across Italy were canceled on Saturday, forcing travelers during the height of the tourist season to seek alternative plans.
Summertime in Italy is frequently the busiest time for transport strikes, which leave commuters and visitors alike stranded as unions push for improved working conditions and contracts. After two years of epidemic losses, this year’s strikes are having an impact despite a tourism surge.
133 flights were canceled, according to national carrier ITA, with the majority being domestic but a handful going to cities in Europe like Madrid, Amsterdam, and Barcelona. From 10 am to 6 pm, low-cost carriers Ryanair and Vueling canceled scores of additional flights because of the strike. Pilots, flight attendants, baggage handlers, and airport staff were among the striking employees.
Numerous flights were canceled beginning at 10 a.m., according to the airport website in Naples, which mirrored the situation at Rome’s Leonardo da Vinci airport.
“Yeah, it was called off. Stefania Spatola, a Philadelphian who was traveling with 35 family members, bemoaned, “It was ITA Airways to Catania. ”All of our flights were disrupted. It is awful. It’s really terrible.
The walkout was announced, according to the labor unions Filt Cgil, Uiltrasporti, and Ugl Trasporto, amid “absolutely unsatisfactory” contract disputes with Malta Air, which operates Ryanair flights. On its website, Ryanair apologized for cancellations and other issues brought on by the strike, which was “beyond our control.”
Sara di Marco, a spokesperson for Filt Cgil, criticized the administration for delaying meetings with unions to extend labor contracts. Because that was not her intention, she stated, “We are not happy to cause inconvenience to customers.”
In an effort “to defer or preempt” the strike, Di Marco continued, they intended to speak with the ministry earlier rather than the day before.
As a result of a rail workers’ strike on Thursday, service, including the high-speed trains that are often assured, was severely disrupted, leaving commuters and tourists stranded in sweltering train stations around the nation.
Lizzy Lake discovered she must remain in the Eternal City for a few more days before she can depart when she arrived at Rome’s airport to get a trip back to London.
We’re thrilled to be able to stay in Rome for a few more days because we adore the city, but it’s obviously frustrating. We really want to come home right now since I have a small boy, she stated. But we’re used to it because there are strikes in England.
