Finnair cancels 110 flights due to industrial action at Helsinki Airport today

The Finnish Aviation Union IAU has announced industrial action at Finnair’s home hub Helsinki Airport, causing extensive disruptions to traffic on Friday, 30 May. According to the IAU, the industrial actions are similar to those carried out earlier in May. The four-hour industrial actions target different work shifts and thus affect many functions essential also to Finnair’s flights throughout the day, such as ground handling operations and aircraft maintenance. As industrial action will cause significant disruptions to the operation of flights, Finnair will have to cancel approximately 110 flights on Friday. Flight cancellations are expected to affect approximately 8,000 Finnair customers. Finnair will offer customers of cancelled flights an alternative flight, which the customer can see in the Manage booking service on Finnair’s website or on the Finnair mobile application.

Finnair has previously allowed customers scheduled to travel on strike days to reschedule their flights, helping them avoid disruptions. Thousands have already taken advantage of this option. Customers with flights on June 2 or June 4 can already change their travel dates by contacting Finnair customer service or the party that sold the ticket.

Customers whose flight was cancelled due to industrial action will be informed about the cancellation as soon as it has been done. After this, the customer will receive a message and be offered a new route, which will also be visible in Finnair’s Manage booking service and mobile application.

The offered routing can be changed within the limits of flight availability in Manage booking or through customer service. Alternatively, customers can cancel their reservation and apply for a refund for the unused ticket.

“We are deeply sorry that our customers’ important travel plans are once again disrupted. We are doing everything we can to provide our customers with alternative routing as quickly as possible,” says Jaakko Schildt, Finnair’s Chief Operating Officer.

Customers are asked to make sure that their contact information is up to date on their reservation.

The industrial action might cause disruptions, for example, in the baggage handling at Helsinki Airport on Friday, so customers travelling on Friday are encouraged to check-in in advance, arrive at the airport on time and pack essential items, such as medicines, in carry-on baggage.

The IAU has also announced similar industrial action on Monday, 2 June and Wednesday, 4 June. Finnair is still assessing the exact effects of the industrial action on that day’s traffic, but it is likely that if it takes place, it will cause disruptions on that day as well.

The article Finnair cancels 110 flights due to industrial action at Helsinki Airport today first appeared in TravelDailyNews International.