The continuing strike at Charleroi Airport (BSCA) is not a case explicitly covered by regulations around air passenger rights, said consumer protection organisation Test-Achats, which urges travellers to proactively contact their airline.
A strike by security staff that started on Monday morning has been rendering Charleroi Airport inaccessible for two days now, as traffic in the area is at a standstill and passengers are blocked from entering – resulting in many flights leaving empty or nearly empty.
"In theory, passenger rights regulations provide the right to a refund or additional compensation when a flight is cancelled. But that is not the case here, the travellers simply cannot board," Test-Achats spokesperson Julie Frère told LN24.
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"The airlines have little margin to manoeuvre, as they are struggling with disruptions themselves," she said, adding that the organisation is closely monitoring the situation. Test-Achats is also calling on travellers to proactively contact their airline, as airline companies are obliged to pass on all information at their disposal to ensure that passengers can board the aircraft.
In the meantime, insurance umbrella organisation Assuralia also indicated that the situation in Charleroi "is not a valid motive for intervention by the cancellation insurance," according to a spokesperson.
Continuous chaos at Charleroi
Since Monday morning, Security Master staff in charge of passenger checks have been taking action out of dissatisfaction with BSCA Security's decision to assign passenger security checks to two operators instead of one. Staff fear the decision will impact their job security and pay conditions.
The strike is leading to chaos at the airport, as many travellers cannot get through the security checks in time to catch their flights, resulting in several planes leaving while nearly empty.
On both Monday and Tuesday afternoon, the airport even closed to all departing passengers "to preserve the safety of passengers," stated a press release.
