Ground Crew Strike Mess Hits Spanish Airports

Holidaymakers readying to alert successful aliases retired of Spain this August should brace for probable disruptions owed to strikes by crushed handling unit astatine awesome airports, including Barcelona-El Prat, Palma de Mallorca, Málaga-Costa del Sol, Alicante-Elche, and Tenerife Sur. 

The business action, which was called by national UGT, is targeting 2 cardinal handling companies: Azul Handling (serving Ryanair) and Menzies Aviation (serving airlines specified arsenic Emirates, British Airways, easyJet, American Airlines, Turkish Airlines, Norwegian, and Wizz Air). The onslaught action coincides, arsenic is habitual, pinch nan highest summertime recreation season, threatening delays, longer queues, and imaginable formation cancellations astatine up to 27 Spanish airports for holidaymakers who person spent their savings connected taking their families distant from it each for a fewer days successful summer.

Airport onslaught dates and affected airlines

Azul Handling (Ryanair): Strikes statesman connected August 15, 2025, and will proceed indefinitely each Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday until December 31, 2025. Stoppages will hap successful 3 regular clip bands: 5am–9am, 12pm–3pm, and 9pm–11.50pm. Only Ryanair flights will beryllium straight affected by this national action, pinch Barcelona-El Prat facing nan astir notable consequence owed to Ryanair’s 15 per cent stock of operations there.

Menzies Aviation: Strikes are planned for nan past 3 weekends of August, from nan 16th to 17th, 23rd to 24th, and 30th to 31st. The walkouts will effect aggregate airlines, including Emirates, British Airways, and easyJet, astatine cardinal airports for illustration Barcelona, Malaga, Alicante, Palma de Mallorca, and Tenerife Sur.

The coincidence of nan strikes, peculiarly connected highest August dates, will nary uncertainty exacerbate disruptions, pinch Barcelona-El Prat perchance seeing up to a 3rd of its operations decimated during nan highest of summertime traffic. July 2025 saw a grounds 5.54 cardinal passengers walk done El Prat alone, emphasising nan precocious request and imaginable for chaos.

Minimum services and expected effect of Spanish airdrome strikes

The Spanish Ministry of Transport has group minimum work levels to mitigate disruptions:

Ryanair (Azul Handling): 75–85 per cent of world flights and those to/from nan Canary and Balearic Islands will operate. Domestic flights pinch crushed carrier alternatives taking complete 5 hours will support astir 60 per cent of service, while those pinch alternatives nether 5 hours will person astir 35 per cent service. Whether strikers will instrumentality to nan minimum is yet to beryllium seen.

According to nan Organisation of Consumers and Users (OCU), passengers affected by cancellations are entitled to a afloat summons refund wrong 7 days and whitethorn declare compensation of up to €600 per person. However, airlines whitethorn mention “extraordinary circumstances” owed to third-party strikes to debar further payouts. Passengers facing delays tin declare compensation aft 5 hours and whitethorn besides retrieve costs for food, lodging, aliases other carrier incurred owed to disruptions. If an replacement formation is accepted, passengers whitethorn waive their correct to refunds aliases further compensation.

What is nan Spanish airports onslaught action each about?

Labour disputes. The UGT national is accusing nan employers of imposing excessive overtime and docking salary erstwhile they refuse. In nan lawsuit of Menzies workers, they are claiming unpaid salaries, up to 4 months successful immoderate cases.

For those affected, cheque retired this post connected really to use for compensation.