LONDON – Jet2 and other carriers are taking flak from customers stranded in Paphos Airport, Cyprus, as hundreds of passengers become stranded due to last-minute strikes at the airport.

The Situation…

Around 200 employees at Larnaca & Paphos airports have joined in an impromptu two-hour strike which has resulted in the cancellation of services by the carrier.

Such a strike took place because redundancies were being made by LGS and Swissport.

This has resulted in 111 employees at Larnaca Airport and 42 at Paphos being sacked, with 45 being made redundant by Swissport in Larnaca.

Around 15 flights have been canceled as a result of today’s strike action.

Jet2 Not Helping Things?

Jet2 had the following to say on this:

“We are aware of last-minute strike action by external ground handling staff at Paphos Airport today (02.11.22). As a result of this unforeseen strike action, no flights are able to depart from Paphos Airport, and baggage cannot be offloaded until further notice.”

“Although this is completely outside of our control, our teams are doing everything they can to look after customers, and we hope to be able to provide an update as soon as possible.”

“We would, of course, like to apologize to all customers who have been affected. Jet2 has no additional scheduled flights due to operate to Paphos Airport tomorrow (03.11.22).”

“You can find the latest information on our website by entering your flight number and clicking more info.”

One passenger stuck at the airport, @RyanIlland on Twitter, has mentioned that around 50 small packets of biscuits have been handed out to customers.

UPDATE 1 @ 1750 UK time – AviationSource got to speak with Ryan via Twitter, who said that there have been absolutely no updates other than airport announcements telling passengers to contact their airline. He said that loads of kids and parents are rammed in the airport at present with no further word from Jet2.

Another person replied thereafter, saying they had been offered nothing whilst stuck at Paphos.

TUI is Part of the Flak Too!

Stranded passengers have also taken to Twitter to take on TUI, with one user claiming that TOM2336 flew out to Paphos despite the industrial action taking place:

On the more extreme side, another user mentioned that their parents were stuck outside the airport as the strike continued, with no communication from the airline about what is going on despite still shipping customers to the airport:

TUI hasn’t released much of a statement other than responding to a customer who is stuck in Paphos Airport at the moment, apologizing for the issues.

They also asked the customer if they had spoken with a TUI rep or with someone at the airport.

This continues to be a developing story, and we will have more for you as the situation continues to evolve.

UPDATE #2 @ 1754UK time – The view of Paphos Airport from RadarBox.com. Not a single movement in the vicinity of the airport at present, with many flights, delayed or canceled still.

UPDATE #3 @ 1757 UK time – TUI says that they have received no internal information regarding what is going on at Paphos Airport currently.

UPDATE #4 @ 1759 UK time – Pictures have emerged of the baggage handlers seen outside of the airport whilst on strike:

UPDATE #5 @ 1801 UK time – Passengers losing their patience with the airline begin to show:

UPDATE #6 @ 1804 UK time – It has appeared that the airlines operating at Paphos Airport knew that the workers were going to go on this impromptu strike. Unnecessary chaos? See below:

UPDATE #7 @ 1806 UK time – Another update shows that there is no Jet2 staff present at their own counter in Paphos Airport, which is providing an embarrassing look for the carrier.

UPDATE #8 @ 1808 UK time – It is understood that those who have flown in on easyJet have been sent to a hotel in Paphos, with there being no indication for passengers on Jet2 & TUI.

UPDATE #9 @ 1811 UK time – Understood that those stuck on flights that have landed in Paphos are being given free drinks. According to sources, once the strike concluded, 60% of airport staff went home, despite aircraft still due to land at the field.

UPDATE #10 @ 1816 UK time – More footage has emerged of customers stuck waiting outside for 5+ hours, with the chaotic scenes now getting worse.

UPDATE #11 @ 1818UK time – Someone has taken footage inside their taxi passing the hundreds of passengers affected by today’s disruption.

UPDATE #12 @ 1820 UK time – One customer has got in touch with AviationSource, and this is what he had to say about the ordeal:

UPDATE #13 @ 1822 UK time – Seems to be quite the inaction from TUI tonight on what they want to do with their passengers. Apparently, the reps are waiting on a decision from head office.

UPDATE #14 @ 1825 UK time – Another clearer picture of the baggage handlers on strike, courtesy of @samvfood on Twitter.

UPDATE #15 @ 1827 UK time – Someone has provided a video-based overview of the inside and outside of the terminal at Paphos Airport.

UPDATE #16 @ 1836 UK time – It seems local media in Cyprus is turning against the Transport Minister Yiannis Karousos, with Cyprus Mail saying the following:

“The strike decision seemed unnecessary considering union bosses were scheduled to attend a meeting with the transport minister, labor ministry officials, and other interested parties on Wednesday.”

“Then again, it would appear the unions no longer have much trust in Transport Minister Yiannis Karousos, who gave assurances a few weeks ago that the workers of companies that lost their service contracts at the airport would be hired by the new contractor.”

You can read the full piece here!

UPDATE #17 @ 1842 UK time – Services seem to be slowly restoring at Larnaca Airport, which has also been subjected to strikes today as well. No sign of a restart in Paphos Airport yet.

UPDATE #18 @ 1850 UK time – That’s it from us! We will provide one more update when operations are back underway at Paphos Airport.

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