Flight disruptions in France impact routes to Morocco amid air traffic controllers' strike

Several flight cancellations and delays are expected at airports across France, as air traffic controllers stage a strike this Tuesday, December 17. The day before, the French Civil Aviation Authority (DGAC) announced that a «local strike notice» would affect air navigation services at Lyon, Ajaccio, and Montpellier.

At Ajaccio airport, all-day delays are anticipated, while flights from Montpellier, Nîmes, and Perpignan have been canceled for the day. According to Le Figaro, 60% of departures from Lyon Saint-Exupéry Airport will also be impacted by cancellations between 6 a.m. and 11 p.m.

Objectif Gard reports that «of the six destinations currently offered from Nîmes, only Fez (Morocco) is affected by these cancellations». Both business and private flights have been disrupted but are expected to resume on Wednesday.

The Syndicat National des Contrôleurs du Trafic Aérien (SNCTA), the national union of air traffic controllers in France, is leading the strike in response to the «difficult context surrounding negotiations on work organization». In a press release, the union's national committee blamed the Direction des Services de la Navigation Aérienne (DSNA) for «the abrupt halt to negotiations concerning work organization for the Ajaccio, Lyon, and Montpellier sectors in 2025». The union described this breakdown as «unacceptable».

This strike follows other recent mobilizations. On November 14, the Syndicat National des Pilotes de Ligne (SNPL) called for a strike at French airports, with pilots protesting higher taxes on airline tickets. On December 5, an inter-professional mobilization took place at Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle, Marseille, and Toulouse airports in opposition to the proposed measures in the 2025 draft budget, introduced by the former Barnier government.