October travel warning: Travel chaos to hit popular destinations including Madrid and Brussels amid strikes and airport disruption

One of the most significant disruptions will occur tomorrow (October 1) in Belgium, where a national strike is expected to cause severe problems at Brussels Airport. Security staff will walk out, resulting in the cancellation of approximately 80 per cent of flights.

Air travellers will also be faced with a range of issues from the start of October. Passengers impacted by these cancellations will be directly informed by their airlines, it has been confirmed.

Managers say: “To ensure the safety of passengers and staff, the airlines, in consultation with Brussels airport, have decided not to operate any departing passenger flights on October 1. The airlines are informing passengers directly of the cancellation of their flights. We ask passengers not to travel to the airport on October 1. Arriving passenger flights may operate, but cancellations are likely. We advise all passengers who are scheduled to arrive at Brussels airport on October 1 to check the status of their flight with their airline or on our website.”

A Brussels Airlines spokesperson said: “Passengers whose flight is cancelled will be contacted by Brussels Airlines. The airline will offer an alternative flight schedule and will do its utmost to get everyone on their destination with the least possible delay. This can be a flight on an earlier departure date, a later date or the same day via another hub of Lufthansa Group.” The issues could impact Austrian Airlines, Eurowings, Swiss and Lufthansa passengers and more.

In Madrid, one of the airport’s four runways, 14R/32L, will be closed for repairs from October 2 to November 12, reducing the airport’s movement capacity by about 25 per cent.

In Mumbai, the airport will be completely shut down from 11am to 5pm local time on 17 October for runway maintenance ahead of monsoon season. The airport will be completely closed from 11am to 5pm local time) on October 17 for pre-monsoon season runway maintenance.

In Singapore, brief closures are scheduled for October 8 and 16 due to the annual military exercise Bersama Lima. The Opsgroup also warns: “Lebanon’s CAA has announced a ban on pagers and walkie-talkies aboard civil aircraft until further notice.”