About 30,000 passengers have had their travel plans disrupted after low-cost airline Ryanair said it was forced to cancel more than 170 flights because of French air traffic control strikes.

The Irish carrier said the cancellations on Thursday and Friday will affect flights to and from France.

Also, flights over the country to destinations such as the UK, Greece, Spain and Ireland are also to be cancelled.

Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary renewed calls on EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to take urgent action to reform EU air traffic control (ATC) services.

This would be in light of the disruption, which comes at the start of the European summer holidays.

Mr O’Leary said: “Once again, European families are held to ransom by French air traffic controllers going on strike. It is not acceptable that overflights over French airspace en route to their destination are being cancelled/delayed as a result of yet another French ATC strike. It makes no sense and is abundantly unfair to EU passengers and families going on holidays.”

Ryanair has long campaigned for an overhaul of ATC services across Europe.

“It wants the EU to ensure ATC services are fully staffed for the first wave of daily departures, as well as to protect overflights during national ATC strikes.

“These two splendid reforms will eliminate 90 per cent of all ATC delays and cancellations and protect EU passengers from these repeated and avoidable ATC disruptions due to yet another French ATC strike,” Mr O’Leary added.

Ryanair also said on Wednesday it had been hit by the recent conflict in the Middle East, and it cancelled more than 800 flights last month.

It is among those to have cancelled and rerouted flights amid the conflict between Israel and Iran, as well as continued attacks in Gaza.

Last week, flights were halted at Dubai airport in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as passengers were told to expect further delays and cancellations.

Ryanair said it still operated more than 109,000 flights in June, indicating that fewer than one per cent of flights were affected.

The Ireland-based business carried 19.9 million passengers in June, representing a three per cent increase on the same month last year. 

(dpa/NAN)