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Travellers heading to Portugal this summer are being warned to expect weekend delays and cancellations as airport staff strike across the country throughout August.
Aircraft servicing, baggage handling and check-in teams are walking out every weekend this month over low pay, unpaid night shifts and parking disputes following British-owned Menzies Aviation’s takeover of Groundforce operations.
Airports in Lisbon, Faro and Porto, as well as Madeira, Porto Santo and the Azores, are all affected, with disruptions impacting flights during the height of the summer season.
Travellers advised to check before flying
The UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) has cautioned that the collective action over weekends in August could lead to significant delays.
Portugal’s airports managing company ANA has issued similar advice, warning that several airlines – including state-owned carrier TAP – are likely to be affected.
Passengers should be ready for more weekend disruption as soon as tomorrow, with the third of the five planned strikes set to begin:
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15 to 18 August
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22 to 25 August
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29 August to 1 September
Flights have already been delayed and cancelled
The strikes have caused chaos at Portugal’s busiest airports.
On the first weekend, Lisbon’s Humberto Delgado Airport scrapped more than 70 flights. The second wave from 8 to 11 August brought more headaches with eight flights to Lisbon cancelled. Long delays also held up departures. According to union sources cited by Lusa News Agency, around 25 flights left without passengers’ checked bags, too.
The standoff has sparked a bitter public feud between Menzies and the Metallurgical and Related Industries Union (SIMA), which represents the striking employees.
“We were forced into this situation by the intransigence of the current management, represented by its vice-president Rui Gomes, who opted for confrontation instead of dialogue, refusing solutions that respected workers’ rights and the interests of the country,” SIMA leader Carlos Araújo said in a statement earlier in August.
“In the middle of the high tourist season, Menzies and TAP have chosen to turn their backs on their professionals, customers and all those who visit Portugal, with an arrogant, irresponsible and calculated attitude.”
Meanwhile, Menzies said plans were in place to keep operations running and insisted the company respects the law and workers’ rights.
A spokesperson for Menzies told Lusa that the union “[insists] on promoting a distorted narrative based on unfounded allegations.”
Chaos reigns across European airports
Portugal’s strikes are just one part of a summer of disruption across Europe.
Italy endured a four-hour nationwide airport strike on 26 July, after earlier walkouts forced 73 flight cancellations in one day across Milan, Venice and Naples.
Spain has already seen disruption from Volotea’s crew and pilots, who staged a strike on 26 July, affecting flights to more than 100 destinations.
Now, from 15-17 August, airports across Spain expect more delays, as more than 3,000 workers at Azul Handling – part of the Ryanair group – have planned a walk-out at 12 airports. The strikes are expected to continue weekly through December.
But few strikes have had the impact of those in France. Air staff strikes in July forced airlines to cancel thousands of flights, affecting more than 1 million passengers. Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary slammed the strikes as “holding European families to ransom” and called for EU action to protect travellers.
Holidaymakers heading to Portugal or elsewhere in Europe are advised to leave extra time at airports, monitor announcements from airlines and expect delays at major hubs.
With strikes coinciding with peak-season travel, this summer’s ongoing disruptions serve as a reminder of how quickly holiday plans can be blown off course.
