EasyJet: 1,700 flights were cancelled over the next three months due to European congestion

EasyJet has cancelled 1,700 flights over the next three months as people prepare for their summer holidays. 

The low-cost airline says it has been forced to act in response to the air traffic control (ATC) strikes in Europe and the ripple effects in the closure of airspace due to the Russian- Ukraine War. 

The firm says 95% of the affected 180,000 travellers have been rebooked on other easyJet flights - meaning around 9,000 people are currently without a replacement. 

The flights which have been cancelled for July, August and September mostly from London Gatwick, represent 2% of its summer flight schedule. An easyJet spokesman said: "We are currently operating up to around 1,800 flights and carrying around 250,000 customers per day, with more crew and pilots flying than ever before and like all airlines, we review our flights on an ongoing basis.

"As Eurocontrol has stated, the whole industry is seeing challenging conditions this summer with more constrained air space due to the war in Ukraine resulting in unprecedented ATC delays, as well as further potential ATC strike action.

"We have therefore made some pre-emptive adjustments to our programme consolidating a small number of flights at Gatwick, where we have multiple daily frequencies, in order to help mitigate these external challenges on the day of travel for our customers and we continue to operate around over 90,000 flights over this period.

"Customers whose flights are affected are being informed, with 95% of customers being rebooked onto an alternative flight and all customers provided with the option to rebook or receive a refund. We are sorry for any inconvenience that this may have caused."

Summer strikes

The news of easyJet's cancellations comes after strike action was announced by air traffic managers. 

Thousands of flights across Europe could be delayed or cancelled as a result of air traffic managers taking industrial action. 

According to The Times, workers at Eurocontrol, which manages European airspace, have said they will walk out in a dispute over pay, working hours and staffing issues. 

An industry source told the newspaper: "In a full-blown strike, 20 to 30% of flights would be at least delayed."

The first round of strikes is expected to be announced by Monday (10 July) unless last-minute talks can resolve the crisis. 

This adds to a particularly challenging summer to travel, as Eurocontrol previously said there will be a surge in air traffic throughout Europe, and issued warnings to major cities and regions such as London, Barcelona, Brussels, Athens, Marseille and Budapest.