All Ryanair flights to and from the UK on Wednesday 18th and Thursday 19th September will not be cancelled, despite walkouts from flight crew. The budget airline is having to work around its third walkout this year as pilots continue to dispute concerns regarding maternity benefits, pay and pensions.
Members of the British Airline Pilots’ Association (Balpa) have caused havoc for holidaymakers this summer. Several strikes have already taken place. British Airways pilots will walkout again on the 27th September forcing the airline to cancel around 1,000 flights. Ryanair pilots will strike today, tomorrow and the 21, 23, 25, 27 and 29 September.
So far, Ryanair has managed to ensure all flights departing from and landing in the UK will continue to operate. The airline has praised the efforts of its UK pilots who have offered to work over the strike period. It’s not yet known whether flights scheduled for the remainder of the strike days will be affected. We would advise passengers to check the Ryanair website for the status of their flight and any updates regarding the strikes. According to the Independent, Ryanair will make an announcement by Friday 21st September.
As it stands, passengers flying today and tomorrow should not be affected. However, if cancellations do occur either during this 48-hour period or on any of the other five strike days, here’s what to do.
Once Ryanair cancels a flight, under European air passengers’ rights rules, the airline has a duty of care to re-arrange flights for affected passengers – so it’s best not to cancel your own flight in this situation.
When a flight is cancelled, Ryanair must either offer you a full refund for any unused tickets or book you onto the next available flight. If a Ryanair flight is not available, the airline can pay for you to fly with another airline. In some cases, the re-book flight may depart from another airport. Ryanair must provide transport between airports i.e. from Heathrow to Gatwick.
