Ryanair welcomes court ruling rejecting strike compensation

Ryanair has welcomed a ruling by the commercial court in Barcelona that no compensation should be paid to customers whose flights are cancelled due to strike action. The ruling, which was the ninth to be made in Spanish courts in recent months, declared that compensation under what’s known as EU261 legislation should not be given in situations where flights are cancelled because of internal strike action, as they are deemed to be beyond an airline’s control. Ryanair, which this week issued a profit warning due in part to concerns over ongoing strike action, claimed that if the industrial action was within its control, “there would be no strikes and no cancellations”. Ryanair added that it fully complies with EU261, what CE Michael O’Leary has recalled a “ridiculous” piece of legislation. <br/>