Travel warning: ‘Nightmare’ for Britons as strike action threatens 2025 holidays
Britons have been told to expect Italy travel chaos as easyJet flight attendants prepare to strike on Wednesday, April 9.
The Italian Ministry for Infrastructure and Transport confirmed that the strike will take place between 10:30am and 2:30pm.
It will involve flight attendants belonging to the Italian Federation of Transport Workers (FILT), the Italian General Confederation of Labour (CGIL) and the Italian Union of Transport (UIL).
According to the experts at AirAdvisor, the strike action could have a “ripple effect” on flights across the UK and Europe.
British holidaymakers going to and from Italy could face disruption
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Holidaymakers visiting Italy have been hit with bad luck in recent weeks, as travellers faced a “dual threat” in March.
This involved strikes by both easyJet pilots and staff at Assohandlers, which represents baggage handlers and ground staff at major airports.
A nationwide general strike on March 8 also meant disruption for travellers, threatening air, rail and road travel.
As strike action continues to thwart passengers’ plans, an expert weighed in on how the easyJet strike could impact holidaymakers from April 9 and beyond.
International lawyer and CEO of compensation experts AirAdvisor explained: “Flight attendant strikes can be extremely damaging for an airline’s day-to-day operations.
“This is because flight attendants are a vital component in the service that commercial airlines provide, helping passengers to have a pleasant flight, but also ensuring safety equipment is working properly and demonstrating emergency procedures.
“Strikes can lead to services being short-staffed or unable to take off, ultimately causing flights to be cancelled.
“This can create a ripple effect, hitting other services that were relying on an aircraft and its crew being available for new flights to the intended destination.
“Equally, when flights are delayed, they can miss their departure slot, which might cause other services from the same airport to depart later than planned. So flights from the UK to Italy and vice versa can very easily be impacted.
“Trends suggest that staff strikes could be an industry-wide nightmare for airlines in 2025, with pilots and crew seeking better pay and working conditions across major European economies.
“In February, easyJet pilots went on strike, while in late March, staff from Finland’s flagship airline, Finnair, walked out, causing 70 flights to be cancelled in a single day.
“Airline staff strikes can prove to be extremely costly for airlines. This is because airlines may seek to draft in other staff to take the place of striking crew.
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A travel expert warned that easyJet flights could be cancelled
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“But also due to the courts possibly viewing staff strikes as avoidable – and therefore passengers affected by disruption could be due compensation.
“The air passenger rights regulation entitles you to compensation of between £220 and £520 if your flight is delayed by more than three hours or cancelled, as a result of industrial action by airline staff.
“If your easyJet flight on April 9 is cancelled or delayed, we strongly suggest collecting any written evidence like SMS or emails stating strikes as the reason.
“You can use AirAdvisor’s free compensation calculator to figure out what you might be owed, before filing a claim.”
GB News has contacted easyJet for comment
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