Aer Lingus is starting to contact up to thousands of passengers whose flights will be canceled due to the strike action.
Most of the affected flights will be on routes connecting the republic’s airports with Europe, but some transatlantic services may also be affected. Services from Cork, Dublin and Shannon airports will also be affected.
Here’s everything we know (and don’t know) so far:
Will my Aer Lingus flight be canceled next weekend?
That’s the question pretty much everyone who has a flight booked with an airline days in advance wants to answer. The unhelpful answer is that right now – at the time of writing – we don’t know for sure, although the airline has released a list of canceled flights so far and issued a statement about what will happen next.
What did the statement say?
A statement issued on Friday afternoon said that “in the first five days of the protest action, 24 flights were canceled a day – a total of 124 flights during those five days. This will affect approximately 4,000 customers per day and 20,000 customers over five days. The cancellation rate is currently at the low end of the 10 to 20 percent range. However, due to the nature of the strike protest, there may be further cancellations occurring close to the time of travel”.
Aer Lingus has criticized the “insidious and vague” form of industrial action taken by the pilots’ union. “Without these cancellations, the impact on customers would have been much worse,” the airline said.
Well, that looks bad. What are passengers supposed to do?
It is bad. And as for passengers, Aer Lingus said it “automatically rebooked some customers on alternative flights and started emailing all other customers to inform them of the flight cancellation and to inform them of their options: change their flight for free, request Money Back. or request a voucher.
[ ‘I have been so stressed by this’: Aer Lingus cancellations overshadow couple’s Italian wedding plans ]
Why are they canceling flights now when there is only a work rule?
Because we are heading into the peak holiday season and all airlines expect to invite employees to work more hours beyond what they are scheduled to do during those peaks. Working to rule means the pilots will refuse to do it. Donal Moriarty, director of corporate affairs at Aer Lingus, said the decision on which flights to end had to be made early because working on the government would otherwise have unforeseeable consequences, including last-minute flight cancellations.
Will a summer of canceled flights hurt Harris?
When will we know exactly what is going on?
According to travel writer and owner of travel extra magazine Eoghan Corry, we are entering uncharted territory and it is unclear how significant the government effort will be. It’s likely to be several days before the full picture of what may happen emerges. but we have an idea which flights could be the first to fall victim to the dispute.
[ Aer Lingus to give passengers details of cancelled flights, with Dublin, Cork and Shannon Airports affected ]
and what are they?
According to industry sources, Aer Lingus will focus primarily on minimizing disruption to passengers as, in addition to reputational damage and financial costs to itself and its passengers, Aer Lingus is also playing high-stakes poker with Ialpa.
Poker?
Aer Lingus management will be hoping to ride out the storm for as long as possible without disrupting too many passengers. If he can do that, it will weaken the hand of the pilots’ union in any subsequent negotiations. Ialpa will be hoping they can cause a significant amount of disruption to Aer Lingus management’s plans, forcing it back to the table with a significantly weakened combination.
I am not interested in their games, I just want to know if my flight will be canceled?
First of all, according to Corry, Aer Lingus will try to consolidate flights on busy short-haul routes. So if they have four flights a day to a certain airport in the UK, they could try to reduce that number to three flights. This would free up one of its aircraft and its crew to serve another airport. Aer Lingus would then try to put all passengers on the canceled flight on other flights to the same airport on the same day. While this would be a huge inconvenience to many passengers, it would avoid the nightmare scenario of having to completely cancel flights to a particular destination, disrupting passengers’ plans and the logistics of getting them either to their destination or home from the location determination, would all be more difficult.
[ What are my rights if industrial action at Aer Lingus affects my holiday plans? ]
How do they fit four planes with three planes’ worth of people?
Well, Aer Lingus’ aircraft load has never been anywhere near Ryanair’s, so those busy routes often have empty seats. They will also be able to draw on the support of BA, Vueling and Iberia to bring in aircraft and crews. Aviation sources say the sister airlines have good capacity, but Aer Lingus says they don’t.
Are there any other likely targets?
Other early targets for cancellation would be flights that have a minimum number of seats already booked. By targeting them, the airline could minimize disruption while protecting key routes.
What are the key routes?
The key routes for Aer Lingus are of course the transatlantic routes. Tickets cost much more than most short and medium distance routes. Airplanes also carry many more passengers. Other key routes will be the so-called main routes to southern Europe’s busiest airports at peak holiday periods, such as Faro on Portugal’s Algarve, Malaga on Spain’s south coast and Barcelona further north. The airline will make every effort to protect these routes.
When is the strike likely to end?
That’s something else we can’t answer, however Corry says he doesn’t think “it will be much longer than a week before Aer Lingus and IALPA management go back to talking.” Right now, IALPA doesn’t know how much damage they can cause, and management doesn’t know how well they can deal with it. Once they both know what the labor cost of ruling will be, talks will begin.”
Have we ever been here before?
Well, in 2003, then Aer Lingus boss Wille Walsh confronted pilots over similar work under the rules and shut down operations, which forced the union back to the bargaining table fairly quickly, but it’s a very risky strategy that could backfire. costs the airline dearly.
If my flight is canceled due to industrial action, what are my rights?
The airline has clear obligations to all its passengers under EU Directive 261. If you are traveling to another country and your flight there is cancelled, Aer Lingus will have to offer you a refund or re-routing to the next available flight or to a later time of your choice.
And what happens if I’m overseas and have to return home on a canceled flight?
Under EU Regulation No. 261, you have the same rights to a refund or rerouting to the next available flight or to a later time of your choice.
The airline also has a duty to get their passengers home and care for them overseas until they are able to do so.
This means that passengers are legally entitled to food and refreshments when they are stranded and will have to pay for hotel accommodation and transport between the hotel and the airport if necessary.
And will the airline arrange accommodation and food for me?
It can, but it probably won’t. If you are overseas and the airline does not provide the care and assistance it should, you will need to make your own reasonable arrangements.
The definition of reasonable is loose, but people who stay at modestly priced hotels and eat at modestly priced restaurants while they wait for the strike to end will be able to claim that money back. It is incredibly important to keep all receipts as they will be needed to make a claim.
And should I send the receipts to the airline?
It is important that you send copies (it is very important that the original documentation is never sent in case it goes missing) of all receipts to Aer Lingus.
Posts should also include booking references, passenger names, original and new flight details. If you don’t get your money back within a reasonable time frame – say four weeks – contact the Irish Civil Aviation Authority.
And can I be compensated?
There is a good chance that you can expect a refund. While strikes by baggage handlers or air traffic controllers are considered exceptional circumstances beyond Aer Lingus’ control, internal industrial action is not, meaning compensation due under EU regulations must be paid.
The amount of compensation payable depends on the flight distance. If the flight is classified as short, the amount payable is EUR 250 per person. It is €400 for a medium-haul flight and €600 per person for a long-haul flight.
To give you an idea of the distances, Dublin to Paris is short distance, Dublin to Barcelona is medium distance and Dublin to New York is long distance.
So the compensation is certain, right?
No, maybe there’s a fly in it. Corry says it is likely that Aer Lingus will challenge its obligations under EU Directive 261 to pay compensation to passengers whose flights have been delayed or canceled in court on the basis that it has taken all the steps it can to avoid the dispute, including using all mechanisms of the Workplace Relations Commission.
“It all comes at a price, but they certainly have the ability to challenge EU 261 in court and there is no shortage of advocates to put on their wigs and stand up and plead their case. I can’t say whether they will win or not, but the legal wrangling may last three or four years.
And will the airline cover the cost of lost hotel accommodation?
No. However, some holiday travel insurance policies may cover trip interruption. Many people don’t, so you’ll need to check the terms carefully.