Every European travel strike this month, dated and marked by whether it pays you

Last checked 13 October 2026. Between 13 and 27 October the confirmed strikes that can touch a European trip are easyJet’s 24-hour Italian crew stoppage on Friday 16 October, two rounds of walkouts at Leeds Bradford Airport from 16 October, a regional general strike in Tuscany on 14 October and two Spanish disputes running under minimum-services orders; the five-day French airline-crew notice for 17–21 October was suspended on 9 October. One rule decides whether any of them pays you cash: a strike by the airline’s own pilots or cabin crew is the airline’s problem under EU261 and UK261, so a cancellation announced less than 14 days out is worth €250–€600 or £220–£520. A strike by air traffic controllers, airport security, ground handlers or a national general strike is normally an “extraordinary circumstance”, so the airline owes a refund or rebooking and meals, but no compensation.

Window13–27 Oct 2026

Confirmed entries8

Pays compensation1 (easyJet Italy)

SuspendedFrance crew 17–21 Oct

Compensation€250–600 / £220–520

Next check20 Oct 2026

Key takeaways

Who walks out decides the money. Airline staff strike: compensation is usually owed. Controllers, airport staff or a general strike: refund or rebooking only, care still owed.
Italy publishes everything in one register, weeks ahead, and protects flights departing 07:00–10:00 and 18:00–21:00. Most other countries publish nothing until a union files.
A notice is not a strike. The French crew notice for 17–21 October was filed on 30 September and suspended on 9 October; the headlines outlived it.

Next 14 days, 13 to 27 October

Eight strikes are confirmed in the next fourteen days and only one of them, easyJet’s Italian crew strike on 16 October, is the kind that pays compensation. The Italian rows are read from the transport ministry’s register on 13 October. Where an official page refused the request, the source column names the outlet used instead.

Date	Country	Who is striking	What is affected	Source	Pays out?
Wed 14 Oct	Italy, Tuscany	CGIL regional general strike, public and private sectors	Regional trains 09:01–17:00, local buses for 4 hours. Air transport excluded.	MIT strike register	No
Fri 16 Oct, 00:00–23:59	Italy, national	easyJet cabin crew (USB Lavoro Privato), 24 hours	easyJet flights to, from and within Italy; departures 07:00–10:00 and 18:00–21:00 protected	ENAC, MIT register	Yes, if notified under 14 days out
Fri 16 Oct 03:00 to Sun 18 Oct 06:00	UK, Leeds Bradford	About 130 Unite members: air traffic control (from 06:00 Fri), security, customer experience, cleaning	All flights at Leeds Bradford if controllers walk out; the airport expects near-normal operations	Unite via Yorkshire Post (Unite site unreachable)	No
Sat 17 to Wed 21 Oct	France	Pilots and cabin crew of French airlines, five unions	Suspended on 9 October after talks on the pension reform; the union says a new notice is possible if the decree is late	SNPNC-FO	n/a
Fri 23 Oct, 19:45–23:45	Italy, Puglia	Ferrovie Sud Est train and bus staff	Regional trains and buses around Bari and Lecce for 4 hours	MIT strike register	No
Fri 23 Oct to Mon 2 Nov	UK, Leeds Bradford	Second round of the Unite dispute, same staff groups	Flights at Leeds Bradford over half-term; exact hours not yet published	Unite via Harrogate News, 13 Oct	No
Ongoing to 30 Nov	Spain	SAERCO tower controllers (USCA, CCOO), indefinite since 17 April	Towers at Lanzarote, Fuerteventura, La Palma, Jerez, Sevilla, Vigo, A Coruña and others; minimum services have been near 100%, so cancellations have been few	Ministerio de Transportes (page would not open; read from its indexed resolutions)	No
Ongoing to 30 Nov	Spain, Barcelona and Madrid	Groundforce handlers at El Prat (CGT); Outsmart baggage-system staff at Barajas, partial stoppages	Baggage and handling at the two biggest airports; scope of actual disruption unclear	Ministerio de Transportes resolutions, as above	Unclear; handler strikes usually do not

The list is short because that is all that is confirmed. Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal and Greece have nothing filed for these two weeks as of 13 October; Belgium’s public-sector strike of 12 October has passed, as has the easyJet Portugal strike of 2–6 October. A cleaners’ strike at Schiphol and the main Dutch stations, 9–14 October, touched concourses, not flights or trains.

The 14-day cut-off

Under EU261 and UK261, an airline that cancels and tells you at least 14 days before departure owes nothing beyond a refund or rebooking, even for its own staff’s strike. easyJet’s Italian strike was registered in September, so a cancellation notified on or before 2 October pays nothing; one notified after that date can pay. Keep the email with its timestamp.

The rest of the month

The last week of October belongs to Italy, with a national general strike on Friday 30 October, a 24-hour stoppage at Pisa and Florence airports the same day, and a Trenitalia strike in Emilia-Romagna on 28–29 October. All three are in the ministry register. The USB general strike takes rail staff out from 21:00 on Thursday 29 October to 20:59 on Friday 30 October and motorway staff from 22:00 on 29 October; a second call the same day, by USI-CIT, excludes air, rail, local transport and ferries, so it changes nothing for travellers. Toscana Aeroporti and GH Toscana ground staff at Pisa and Florence stop for 24 hours from 00:00 on 30 October, which is airport handling, so no compensation.

The Emilia-Romagna strike runs from 21:00 on Wednesday 28 October to 21:00 on Thursday 29 October and covers Trenitalia customer operations at Bologna, Reggio Emilia AV Mediopadana and Rimini, on the Milan–Florence–Rome high-speed line. Trenitalia publishes its guaranteed long-distance trains the day before. In the UK the Leeds Bradford action runs to 2 November; no other rail or airport dates were found at RMT, ASLEF or Unite on 13 October.

Already registered for November and December

Thu 5 Nov, France: interprofessional strike and demonstration day called by CFDT, CGT, FO, UNSA and FSU on 5 October. No SNCF or RATP notice yet; expect them in the last week of October.
Fri 6 Nov, Italy: ENAV air traffic control at Bari, 13:00–17:00.
Fri 20 to Sat 21 Nov, Italy: national rail strike 21:00–20:00 (CUB, SGB); local transport on 21 Nov.
Sat 21 Nov, Italy: national ENAV air traffic control strike 13:00–17:00 (FILT-CGIL, UGL-TA). Expect the pattern of 30 September, when a four-hour stoppage cancelled 308 flights.
Sun 22 Nov, Italy: ENAV Milan Malpensa 24 hours; Venice Marco Polo security staff 24 hours.
Wed 25 Nov, Greece: a 24-hour public-sector strike by ADEDY was reported by Argophilia on 12 October; it was not on adedy.gr on 13 October, so treat it as unconfirmed.
Fri 4 Dec, Italy: national general strike by the grassroots unions; rail 21:00 on 3 Dec to 21:00 on 4 Dec.
Mon 14 Dec, Italy: Aviation Services ground staff at Rome Fiumicino and Ciampino, 24 hours.
Sat 19 to Wed 23 Dec, Portugal: easyJet cabin crew at Lisbon, Porto and Faro, confirmed by Turismo de Portugal’s TravelBI. An airline-staff strike, so a late cancellation pays.

Country by country, where strikes are published

Italy is the only country that publishes every transport strike in one official place weeks ahead; everywhere else the first reliable signal is the union’s filing or the airport’s own notice. These are the pages this desk reads.

Italy. The ministry register at scioperi.mit.gov.it lists every proclaimed strike by sector, region and hour. ENAC lists the air strikes, the guaranteed flights and the protected bands of 07:00–10:00 and 18:00–21:00.
France. The DGAC announces controller strikes and orders airlines to cut a stated share of flights per airport a day or two ahead. Crew notices appear at SNPNC-FO and the pilots’ SNPL; rail at SNCF Voyageurs, Paris transport at RATP.
Belgium. Brussels Airport posts a banner when handlers or security are affected; on 9 October about 140 flights were cancelled when the handler Alyzia joined a national demonstration, according to VRT. Rail plans appear on SNCB/NMBS two days ahead. No further national date was filed as of 13 October.
Spain. The Ministerio de Transportes issues a minimum-services resolution for every aviation strike, the only official confirmation a strike is real; AENA carries airport notices.
Germany. Strikes are “Warnstreiks” announced the evening before by Verdi (airport security, ground staff), EVG (rail) or the pilots’ Vereinigung Cockpit, with Lufthansa’s reply in its newsroom. Nothing is filed for October or November.
UK. No register. The airline’s or airport’s statement is the source, with the announcement at Unite, NATS for air traffic control, and the CAA on what counts as extraordinary.
Portugal. ANA Aeroportos posts airport notices; airline strikes surface through the cabin-crew union SNPVAC and the tourism board’s TravelBI.
Greece. The Hellenic Civil Aviation Authority confirms whether controllers join a general strike, often the day before and sometimes after a court ruling. General strikes are called by ADEDY (public sector) and GSEE (private).
Netherlands. Schiphol and KLM publish their own notices; rail at NS. Nothing beyond the cleaners’ action is filed.

What you are owed, by strike type

Rebooking or a refund is owed whoever strikes; cash compensation is owed only when the strikers work for your airline. The Court of Justice settled it in Airhelp v SAS (C-28/20, 2021): a strike by an airline’s own staff over pay is part of running an airline, not an extraordinary circumstance. A strike by people the airline does not employ is outside its control. The full reasoning is in the guide to strike compensation by who is striking, and the carve-out itself in EU261 extraordinary circumstances.

Who is striking	Compensation (EU261 / UK261)	Refund or rebooking	Meals, hotel
Your airline’s pilots or cabin crew	Yes: €250 / €400 / €600 or £220 / £350 / £520 by distance, unless told 14+ days ahead or the flight still lands under 3 hours late	Yes, your choice	Yes
Air traffic control	No, extraordinary	Yes, your choice	Yes, with no cap
Airport security or ground handlers employed by the airport	Usually no	Yes	Yes
National or general strike	No	Yes	Yes
Rail or metro strike that makes you miss a flight	No; the airline did nothing	Only what your fare rules allow	No

The bands are €250 or £220 up to 1,500 km, €400 or £350 for intra-EU flights over 1,500 km and all flights of 1,500–3,500 km, and €600 or £520 beyond 3,500 km. Care starts after a 2-hour delay up to 1,500 km, 3 hours to 3,500 km and 4 hours beyond, and includes a hotel if you are stuck overnight. Rebooking must be at the earliest opportunity, which can mean another airline, as set out in rebooking on another airline after a cancellation. Which law covers a given flight is in UK261 versus EU261, and the whole system in the flight rights guide.

What to do today if your flight is on a strike date

Do nothing irreversible until the airline cancels; the money and the care only start once it does. In this order:

Identify the striker. Register, airline notice or airport banner. Airline staff means compensation is in play; anyone else means refund or rebooking plus care.
Check the protected bands. In Italy a departure scheduled 07:00–10:00 or 18:00–21:00 must operate; in France the DGAC names the airports and the share of flights cut.
Wait for the airline to cancel, then record when. The timestamp on the cancellation email is what the 14-day rule turns on. Never cancel the booking yourself; that ends every claim.
Take the rebooking, not the voucher. If the airline’s next seat is days away, ask in writing for a seat on another carrier and keep the refusal.
Keep every receipt for meals, a hotel and transfers. In Europe there is no cap on reasonable care costs.
If a rail or metro strike is the problem, leave earlier than feels sensible. On 12 October Belgium ran about 70% of InterCity trains; the account of that day is in the Belgium national strike guide.
Claim within the window. Six years in England and Wales; the EU reform now moving through Brussels would cut the EU window to nine months.

The easyJet case, as a worked example

A Milan–London easyJet flight on 16 October cancelled on 14 October is an airline-staff cancellation notified two days out: €250 per passenger plus a rebooking or refund, and meals while you wait. The same flight cancelled on 1 October pays nothing beyond the refund. Detail in easyJet’s Italy strike and what it pays.

How this page is kept current

The desk re-reads the Italian register, ENAC and every official page above each Monday, and again whenever a union files or lifts a notice, then changes the “last checked” date at the top. An entry goes in only from a government register, a regulator’s notice, the operator’s own statement or the union’s own communiqué; where an official page refuses the request, the row says so and names the outlet used. Suspended notices stay listed for one cycle so a reader who saw the headline can see the lift. A strike missing from the table has not been confirmed, not been judged unimportant.

Flying to Nepal through a strike?

Most of our trekkers reach Kathmandu through a European hub, and a cancelled connection is the usual reason a trek start moves. Tell us the flight and we hold the start date and adjust the itinerary; we have run treks out of Pokhara since 1998 and a late arrival is routine, not a crisis.

See our treks and dates →

Frequently asked questions

Does a strike announced weeks ago still pay compensation?

Only if your specific flight was cancelled less than 14 days before departure. A public strike date is not notice; the airline must tell you your flight is cancelled, and airlines often wait until the week itself while they rebuild schedules.

My flight operated but landed three hours late because of a controllers’ strike. Anything owed?

Care during the wait, yes; compensation, no. An air traffic control strike is an extraordinary circumstance under both EU261 and UK261, so the delay earns meals and, if needed, a hotel, but not the cash payment.

Can I claim from my travel insurance instead?

Usually only if the policy was bought before the strike was announced. Most policies exclude a “known event”, and a notice in a public register counts as known from the day it appears.

Are Italian flights in the protected bands really guaranteed?

Yes, by law. Flights scheduled to depart 07:00–10:00 and 18:00–21:00 must operate during a strike, and ENAC publishes further guaranteed flights the day before. A flight outside the bands can still run if enough crew work, which is why easyJet confirms its schedule only a day or two ahead.

Why are there so few entries for Germany, Spain and the UK?

Because those countries do not publish strikes in advance. German unions announce a Warnstreik the evening before, British unions give 14 days’ notice that no register collects, and Spain confirms a strike only through a minimum-services resolution. An empty row means nothing filed, not nothing coming; check again on the Monday before you fly.

Keep reading

Flight hit by a strike? Who pays depends on who walked out

The court rulings behind the airline-staff rule, case by case.

What counts as an extraordinary circumstance

The carve-out airlines use, and where it stops.

UK261 versus EU261

Which law covers your flight, and how the two are splitting.

Rebooking on another airline after a cancellation

What earliest opportunity means when the airline has no seat for days.

Sources: Ministero delle Infrastrutture e dei Trasporti strike register (read 13 October 2026); ENAC, Voli garantiti in caso di sciopero (updated 12 October 2026); SNPNC-FO communiqué of 9 October 2026; Yorkshire Post and Harrogate News, 13 October 2026, reporting Unite; Ministerio de Transportes minimum-services resolutions for October–November 2026; VRT NWS, 8 October 2026; Turismo de Portugal TravelBI, 18 September 2026; Argophilia, 12 October 2026; CGT Haute-Garonne, 7 October 2026; Regulation (EC) 261/2004 and the UK retained version; CJEU C-28/20 Airhelp v SAS.

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