Despite the threat by Belgian pilots to join the cabin crew strike if non-Belgian staff were deployed to replace striking employees, low-cost airline Ryanair went ahead and brought in crews from other European bases to counter the strike at Brussels South Charleroi Airport (BSCA).
The strikers' fears that Ryanair would call in foreign staff to bypass the strike have been confirmed, Didier Lebbe of the National Employees' Centre (CNE) told Belga News Agency, estimating that six of the 15 planes based at Charleroi Airport took off this morning with non-Belgian cabin crew.
In response, the union believes that the strike – scheduled for this weekend (30, 31 December and 1 January) and the next (7 and 8 January) – will grow.
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On Thursday evening, the company's Belgian pilots had warned Ryanair that they would also stop working if the carrier used non-Belgian employees to counter their colleagues on strike. So far, some 150 to 200 people are striking in Charleroi, Lebbe said.
On Friday morning, nearly 60 of the company's return flights were cancelled for the day, but this number is "likely to increase." The crews that operated longer flights in the morning will no longer be available in the afternoon and it is not certain that there will be enough crew to guarantee the following connections.
Based on the latest estimates, the strike will affect around 20,000 passengers.
How to get your money back?
Consumer protection organisation Test Achats reiterated that in case of a cancellation by the airline, the airline is obliged to offer passengers an alternative: either an alternative flight or a refund.
Compensation is also provided in the event of delays or alternative flights. Depending on how long you have to wait, you may be entitled to compensation of between €250 and €600. Affected travellers can apply for this compensation on Ryanair's website.
"The monetary compensation is determined by the distances between the departure and arrival airports," a statement on the website reads.
- €250 for flights of 1,500 km or less; or
- €400 for intra-European flights of more than 1,500 km and for all other flights between 1,500 km and 3,500 km; or
- €600 for all non-EU flights over 3,500 km.
In case you are stranded abroad, compensation for meals and overnight stays is provided.
