Travel woes hit France as Paris airport strike drags on

The chaos that has plagued the European travel industry for weeks is coalescing in France as staff at Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport plan to strike for the second day in a row Friday and a country-wide rail walkout looms next week. France’s civil aviation authority ordered the scrapping of 17% of flights through the hub between 7 a.m. and 2 p.m. Friday after talks between unions and management at airport operator Aeroports de Paris failed to reach a wage deal. As a result, Air France-KLM, the international hub’s biggest carrier, canceled 64 flights at its French arm, while planning to keep all long-haul and nearly 90% of short and medium-haul service. The intensification of travel turmoil in France follows upheaval at other major European cities over the past weeks including in London, Amsterdam and Frankfurt due to staffing shortages and labor action. The US has also been plagued by disruptions, with Delta’s CEO Thursday apologizing to customers for an “unacceptable” level of canceled and delayed flights. As demand surges, airports and carriers in Europe have been forced to reduce flight schedules due to staffing shortfalls. French unions and airport management have been locked in negotiations over wages and working conditions, as French inflation quickened to the fastest since the euro was introduced. The next round of talks is scheduled for Friday afternoon, operator ADP said in a statement late Thursday.<br/>