Rugby World Cup: sport fans face airport carnage as French air traffic controllers announce strike dates

Sport fans travelling to watch the Rugby World Cup may face airport chaos as French airport staff have threatened to strike.

France’s largest union for air traffic controllers (SNCTA) has called on workers to conduct a nationwide walkout on 15 September and 13 October.

The SNCTA is calling for "catching up with inflation and the introduction of mandatory annual negotiations" on pay and said the strike is simply the result of "the silence of the French civil aviation authority”.

The strikes are set to take place when thousands of people are set to travel for the Rugby World Cup which begins on 8 September and ends on 28 October and is being held in France.

The strikes could lead to flight cancellations and disruption to flights and affect those travelling to France by plane.

French air traffic control workers went on strike earlier this year which caused chaos for travellers whose flights were not taking off or landing in the country. This is because many flights make their way over France on their journey to other destinations.

It caused delays and cancellations in nearby countries such as Spain, the UK, Germany and Italy, and in March more than 10 million passengers were affected by delays or cancellations due to the strikes.

Another strike by French air traffic controllers on 1 May saw 33% of flights cancelled at Paris’s Orly airport, Marseille, Lyon, Bordeaux and Nantes, while 25% were cancelled at Paris Charles de Gaulle, Beauvais and Nice.

The strike set for 15 September coincides with the New Zealand vs Namibia game at Stadium de Toulouse, followed by Samoa vs Chile at Stade de Bordeaux, and Wales vs Portugal at Stade de Nice.

People who are also travelling in advance to see Ireland vs Tonga at Stade de la Beaujoire on the following day on 16 September could also be affected by the strikes.

There are no matches on 28 October but the strike set for this date could affect fans travelling back from the final.

The Rugby World Cup matches will be played at stadiums across France including Stade Geoffroy-Guichard in Saint-Étienne, Stade de Bordeaux, Stade de Marseille, Stadium de Toulouse, Stade Pierre-Mauroy in Villeneuve-d’Ascq, Stade de Nice, Stade de la Beaujoire in Nantes, OL Stadium in Lyon, and Stade de France in Saint-Denis, Paris.

The final will take place at the Stade de France.

More than 2.5 million tickets have been sold and a record 600,000 spectators are expected to travel from outside of France to watch the matches.