Europe’s summer 2026 strikes: when the airline owes you compensation and when it does not
28 July 2026
From Spanish air traffic controllers to airline staff walkouts, summer 2026 has brought a wave of European strikes. Here is the rule that decides whether you get paid.
Summer 2026 has brought several overlapping labour disputes across European aviation: an indefinite strike by air traffic controllers employed by the private operator Saerco in Spain, affecting airports including Seville, Jerez, Vigo and A Coruña and creating risk at Palma de Mallorca, Málaga, Alicante, Barcelona, Madrid and Ibiza; recurring pilot strikes in Italy; and disruption in France and Belgium. From a passenger's seat these all look the same — a delayed or cancelled flight. Under EU261, though, they fall into two very different categories.
The rule: whose staff is striking
The question that decides compensation is simple: is it the airline's own staff striking — pilots, cabin crew, the carrier's ground staff — or an external body the airline depends on operationally but does not employ, such as air traffic control, airport security, or an independent ground-handling contractor?
Airline staff on strike — compensation is due
This was settled by the Court of Justice in the joined case Krüsemann and Others v TUIfly (C-195/17), decided in 2018: a wildcat strike by TUIfly's flight crew was not recognised as an "extraordinary circumstance." The Court's reasoning was that the right to strike is a normal part of employment relations, and an employer is expected to be prepared for it as part of ordinary business. This ruling remains the controlling precedent in 2026 and is the basis for how similar cases, including the current Italian pilot strikes, are assessed.
External strikes — compensation is usually not due
The Spanish ATC dispute is the reverse case. Air traffic controllers are not employed by the airlines whose flights they handle, so under established practice their strike counts as an "extraordinary circumstance," in the same category as airspace closures or security requirements. Cash compensation is generally not owed in this situation.
That does not mean you are left with nothing. The right to care — meals, drinks, communication and, if an overnight stay is needed, a hotel with transfers — applies regardless of the cause of the delay, including extraordinary circumstances. See the guide on what you are owed besides money for the details.
How to check your own case
Airline notifications sometimes just say "strike" without specifying whose. It is worth checking: if news coverage or the airport's notice names an air traffic controllers' union or a security provider, that generally points to an extraordinary circumstance. If it is your airline's own pilots, cabin crew or ground staff striking, the Krüsemann precedent means compensation is due, and a refusal on that basis is worth challenging.
The fee is deducted only from the compensation recovered. No payout — no fee.