French Air Traffic Strike Threatens Chaos: Over 1 Million Travelers Face Flight Cancellations

Major disruptions in French airports in September. The majority union SNCTA among French air traffic controllers has decided to go on strike on Thursday, September 18, 2025. It is demanding, among other things, a "full catch-up of inflation" and an evolution of the governance of the profession. At the origin of this new strike, a "failure of social dialogue" with the state employer. This social movement will affect several European airports, but will also lead to the cancellation of several flights, as well as a complex reorganization of flight plans.

During the previous strike observed on July 3 and 4, the second union of air traffic controllers, Unsa-ICNA and the USAC-CGT union, the third representative organization of air traffic controllers, denounced insufficient staff, as well as a "severely degraded social context" at the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGAC). "For several years, the governance of air traffic control has been marked by a relationship of mistrust, punitive practices and degrading management methods," accuses the SNCTA. The union is demanding "a profound change in the management of the operations department".

This strike by the minority unions UNSA-ICNA and USAC-CGT has led to the cancellation of more than 1,400 flights per day and affected more than 1 million passengers in Europe, specifies Air Journal, adding that the overall cost of the July movement "was estimated at 120 million euros, including 47 million for delays and 73 million for flight cancellations".