More than 4,000 flights are scheduled to arrive at Son Sant Joan airport during the August bank holiday weekend, coinciding with protests by ground handling staff

The first ground handling strike affecting Ryanair is scheduled to begin on Friday 15, with strikes affecting easyJet and Norwegian, among other airlines, on Saturday.

With the busiest weekend of the summer approaching due to the August bank holiday and the announcement of strikes in ground assistance services for airlines such as Ryanair, easyJet and Norwegian, among others, airlines are asking passengers to arrive at terminals earlier than usual. At Palma airport alone, more than 4,000 flights are scheduled from Thursday to Sunday, according to information released by Aena on Wednesday. If the strikes go ahead, it will be difficult for airlines to operate and meet departure times when Son Sant Joan is at full capacity due to high air traffic during the high season.

Between Thursday and Sunday, 4,007 landings and takeoffs are expected at Son San Joan, 207 fewer than last year on the same dates during the long weekend for the national holiday on August 15. On Thursday, 925 flights will be handled; on Friday, 968; and on Saturday and Sunday, the thousand mark will be exceeded, with 1,079 and 1,035, respectively.

The government has not yet announced the minimum services for the nationwide strike called by Azul Handling, the company that provides services to the Ryanair Group, which includes Ryanair, Lauda, Buzz, and Malta Air.Ground handling workers, which includes passenger services, ramp services, baggage handling, aircraft towing, and baggage incident management, are called to strike by the UGT union on August 15, 16, and 17. A schedule of protests has been set with time slots: from 5 a.m. to 9 a.m., from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m., and from 9 p.m. to 11:59 p.m. The strikes will affect Ryanair’s bases in Spain, including those in Palma and Ibiza. The protests will continue on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays until December 31 with the same schedule.

Strikes at Menzies

The second conflict, also at the national level, affects Menzies, with the strike in this case scheduled to begin on Saturday, August 16. This company provides ground handling services for aircraft and passengers from a variety of airlines. At Palma airport, it provides handling services for easyJet, British Airways, Norwegian, Wizz Air, Volotea, and Binter, according to José Antonio Negreira, secretary of the Air Sector of the UGT in the Balearic Islands, which is part of the UGT’s State Federation of Services, Mobility, and Consumption (FeSMC-UGT). The strikes will take place on Saturday, August 16, 17, 23, 24, 30, and 31, 2025, at all work centers and airports where the company operates, including Son Sant Joan.
Of the airlines that may suffer the ravages of the strikes called by the workers, one of those that may be most affected at the Mallorcan airport is easyJet. “It will be one of those that will be hit hard,” says Negreira. For now, negotiations are continuing and it cannot be ruled out that the strikes will not go ahead.

“Out of our control”

Meanwhile, easyJet is cautious about the conflictive situation at Menzies, saying it is “out of our control.” “We are aware of the ground handling strike planned across Spain from August 16,” the company told this newspaper.

“Although we do not expect any impact on our operations, we advise passengers traveling to and from Spain during the strike days to allow extra time to get to the airport,” warns the low-cost airline, which carries a high volume of tourists at this time of year. In view of possible flight cancellations and delays, and “although this is beyond our control, we would like to apologize to all our customers for any inconvenience this may cause,” they added.

“We advise passengers traveling to and from Spain to allow extra time to get to the airport.”

Ryanair, for its part, has chosen to dismiss the possibility that the strike at Azul Handling will affect it, despite the fact that the Irish low-cost airline is the company with the highest traffic. “Ryanair does not anticipate any disruption to its operations as a result of strikes by third-party ground handling staff in Spain,” it said when asked about the conflict.

Vueling warning

Other airlines, such as Vueling, to avoid confusion, have chosen to warn on their websites that they are not affected by the ground staff strikes planned at Spanish airports this weekend.

“We are not seeking to paralyze the service or harm passengers. What we want is for the company to comply with the law, respect the agreement, and recognize the dignity of its workforce,“ said the UGT. Azul Handling ”must understand that this strike is the direct consequence of its inaction and disregard for workers’ rights. The solution is in its hands: real dialogue and concrete measures,” they warned.

At Son Sant Joan, UGT has no representation on the Azul Handling committee. CCOO is the majority union. Susana Carballido, head of the Air Sector at CCOO Baleares, believes that in Mallorca, the strike affecting Ryanair could be closely followed.