EasyJet cancels hundreds of flights amid French strikes

On July 3 and 4, 2025, France experienced a two-day strike by air traffic control, leading to widespread disruption in air travel. Major airlines, including EasyJet and Ryanair, were heavily affected. EasyJet reported that it had to cancel 274 flights during this period, impacting tens of thousands of passengers traveling to and from various destinations, including the UK, Greece, Spain, and Ireland. Ryanair also faced cancellations, scrapping 170 flights and affecting over 30,000 travelers alone. As the airline industry enters the busy summer months, EasyJet's third quarter performance is under close scrutiny, especially following its previous report of pre-tax losses of £394 million for the six months ending March 2025. Analysts are particularly interested in understanding how the recent strikes may further impact financial standings and customer bookings. Market experts suggest that while EasyJet's package holiday division has shown promising performance with a 42% increase in pre-tax profits in the first half, the airlines will need to manage pricing carefully to avoid further losses. Analysts predict that maintaining or improving pricing levels in the summer season will be crucial for improving overall profitability, particularly since seasonal demand generally leads to profits during summer months after winter losses. Since the operational challenges arose from the strike, industry observers are keen to ascertain if there will be lasting implications on EasyJet's recovery trajectory and whether the airline can adequately balance operational efficiency with customer satisfaction amidst rising costs and compensation obligations.