Belgian air traffic controllers strike, causing widespread flight cancellations

All departures and arrivals to and from Brussels and Charleroi airports have been cancelled this afternoon due to an unannounced strike by Belgian air traffic controllers.

The so-called wildcat strike at national air traffic control provider Skeyes, started at 2 p.m., both airports confirmed.

Zaventem's Brussels Airport advised departing passengers not to travel to the airport for flights scheduled between 2 p.m. and 7 p.m., all of which have been cancelled. The hub said in an email that some 140 flights were affected.

“Flights scheduled between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. will be delayed until after 9 p.m. if possible,” the airport said on its website.

Brussels South Charleroi Airport said the surprise action had already “led to the cancellation of numerous flights between 6:30 a.m. and 9:30 a.m.” The resumption of the strike in the afternoon is expected to disrupt most departures and arrivals until 9 p.m., according to the airport schedule.

According to Belgian public broadcaster VRT, the strike at Skeyes is linked to negotiations between management and trade unions over the new digital control center serving Charleroi and Liège's cargo airport.

Skeyes did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Ryanair said the strike had led to the cancellation of 100 of its flights, affecting almost 20,000 passengers.

“While we respect the right to strike, it is unacceptable that airlines were given zero notice of today’s Belgian air traffic control strike,” said Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary in a statement.

Real-time data from Flightradar24 show that the strike is not affecting flights flying over Belgium en route to other destinations.