Air traffic strike to hit Paris

Flights to and from Paris airports Roissy and Orly are expected be disrupted next week by a strike by air traffic controllers, the civil aviation authority and the union said yesterday.

The CGT union, which has called the strike, said up to 50 per cent of flights could be cancelled between Monday and Friday at Orly airport while 20-40 per cent could be cancelled between Tuesday and Wednesday at Roissy.

The dispute is over a plan to move Orly controllers to Roissy before regrouping them all on one site near Paris in 2015.

"The conflict is really about security, from moving Orly to Roissy before doing better afterwards," said Philippe Lohat, national secretary of the CGT's air traffic branch.

The more moderate CFDT union withdrew its strike call after talks with the DGAC civil aviation authority. The DGAC said discussions with the CGT were continuing to try to find a solution. The strike is the latest in a series of industrial actions to hit Paris air traffic.

In October, Air France cabin crew went on strike for five days over pay and conditions, hitting thousands of travellers during a public holiday and school holidays.

In December and January, strikes by Air France ground crew forced some flights to be cancelled.