Brussels South Charleroi Airport expects 42 flights to be cancelled on Wednesday, 23 September, as air traffic controllers continue their nightly strike action. According to the airport, 12 flights will be cancelled during the morning and a further 30 in the evening. Another 14 flights will operate with changes to their original schedule.
The industrial action by Skeyes air traffic controllers at Charleroi has been taking place every night between 22:00 and 08:00 since 16 September and is currently scheduled to continue until 10 October. The overnight stoppages have already resulted in more than 200 cancelled flights at the airport.
The disruption primarily affects Ryanair, which operates the vast majority of flights at Charleroi. Among the routes scheduled to operate on Wednesday are services to destinations including Venice, Catania, Marseille, Budapest, Alicante, Tirana, Bologna, Bratislava, Pula, Salerno, Figari, Thessaloniki, Edinburgh, Dublin, Malta and Milan Bergamo. The exact list of cancelled flight numbers can change as airlines adjust their operations.
The dispute concerns night-shift premiums for air traffic controllers based at Charleroi. The controllers are seeking the same night premium as their colleagues in Liège, in connection with plans for a digital control tower in Namur that will eventually handle traffic for both Charleroi and Liège airports.
Passengers travelling through Charleroi on Wednesday are advised to check their airline’s latest flight information before travelling to the airport.