Ryanair cancels Belgian flights over New Year’s on strike action

Ryanair Holdings Plc is scrubbing some flights to and from Belgium over the New Year’s weekend because of a strike by cabin crew.

The airline was forced to cancel “a small number” of its 2,500 flights into and out of the country on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Europe’s largest discount carrier said in a statement.

Brussels South Charleroi airport told customers that not all flights will be called off so it was important to check the status before arrival. “The airport regrets this strike action, which is completely unrelated to the airport,” it said in a website notice.

The airport’s chief executive officer, Philippe Verdonck, told AFP that 48 Ryanair flights had been canceled on Friday, with the action set to halt 30% of the airline’s flights through its Belgium hub. Overall, some 22,000 passengers were expected to be affected over the three days, he said.