Ryanair to cancel 190 flights amid strikes

Ryanair has cancelled 190 flights on Friday, blaming the latest cabin crew strikes.

Strikes will be taking place by cabin crew based in Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands, Portugal, Italy and Germany.

30,000 passengers will be affected and have received a text and email about the cancellations.

The Irish airline has said that it “sincerely regrets these unnecessary customer disruptions, which have been called by unions at the behest of competitor airline employees.”

The airline was forced to cancel 400 flights in August as well as a similar number in July.

Kenny Jacobs from Ryanair said: “These repeated unnecessary strikes are damaging Ryanair’s business and our customer confidence at a time when oil prices are rising strongly, and if they continue, it is inevitable that we will have to look again at our capacity growth this winter and in summer 2019. We hope these unions will see common sense.”

Rory Boland, the travel editor from Which?, said the group must save its customers holidays.

“The airline must now immediately arrange alternative flights or provide a full refund and pay out compensation to those affected – including the many people still waiting for the money they’re owed from its shambolic summer of cancellations,” he said.

Ryanair has agreed to a deal with staff based in Ireland. The group employs over 4,000 pilots, with around 350 of them based in Ireland. Ryanair said that negotiations in the country proved among the most difficult.

Shares in the group (LON: RYA) are trading down 0.73 percent at 12,92 (0912GMT).

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Safiya focuses on business and political stories for UK Investor Magazine. Her interests include international development, travel and politics.