French Air Traffic Control Will Strike and Its Impact on Cargo

Recently, we have paid attention to the important information that French air traffic controllers plan to go on a collective strike in early July. This action is on the eve of the peak of summer travel in France, and is expected to have a wide impact on air transport, transit flights and European airspace logistics chains at French domestic airports.

As a professional international logistics fulfillment service provider, Chinadivision always puts your cargo transportation needs first. Now we will inform you of the latest situation of this strike and our response plan as follows:

Latest information on the strike

UNSA - ICNA, the second largest air traffic controller representative union in France, has proposed a two-day strike motion from July 3 to 4. According to the analysis of logistics professionals, if the strike occurs as scheduled, air cargo at many airports in France is very likely to be stagnant and delayed. Since France has hundreds of routes across northern and southern Europe, this strike will even affect other flights passing through French airspace, causing an impact on the aviation transportation network in the entire European region.

Judging from historical strikes, other French unions may also join the strike. The UNSA-ICNA union also called on all workers to strike in its strike notice press release, which undoubtedly further exacerbated the uncertainty of the strike on logistics and transportation.

Analysis of the reasons for the strike

The UNSA-ICNA union emphasized several dissatisfactions in the press release announcing the strike, mainly including:

Staffing needs

The number of employees needs to be increased to solve the current structural shortage of staff. The union pointed out that long-term recruitment weakness and lack of forward-looking planning are the root causes of the decline in French air traffic control efficiency and flight delays, despite their repeated warnings over the years.

Technological progress

Hope to obtain better technological progress to improve work efficiency and service quality.

Wage conditions

Demand to improve wage conditions and improve employee treatment.

Management culture

Protesting the "toxic management culture" within the French Civil Aviation Administration, believing that the current leadership management style is "arbitrary, rude, breaking promises, and out of touch with the reality on the scene." This long-term pressure and distrust of the work atmosphere no longer meets the high standards of calmness and safety required by aviation control.

Possible logistics impact of the strike

Air cargo at major French airports (Paris Charles de Gaulle, Marseille, Lyon, etc.) may be delayed or suspended; international flights flying over French airspace may be forced to divert or delay, affecting routes to many countries including the UK, Spain, Germany, Italy, etc.;

Airlines will face flight rescheduling and crew scheduling chaos, and delays may last for several days after the strike ends; e-commerce platforms and B2B companies will face challenges in fulfilling cross-border orders, especially for time-sensitive goods that rely on air transport.

The impact of this strike may not be limited to the two days of July 3rd and 4th. Airlines usually need to rearrange crews and aircraft to catch up, which may lead to chain delays for some time after the strike ends.

Chinadivision's response strategy

In order to minimize the impact of this strike on your cargo transportation and ensure that your cargo can be delivered to the destination safely and on time, Chinadivision has formulated the following response plan:

Real-time monitoring and early warning

We have a professional logistics monitoring team that will pay close attention to the latest developments of the strike, including the progress of the strike, the number of participating unions, affected airports and routes, etc.

Once we find a situation that may affect the transportation of your goods, we will immediately issue you an early warning through email, SMS, phone calls and other methods to keep you informed of the transportation status of the goods.

Flexible adjustment of transportation plan

Multimodal transport: During the strike, we will flexibly adjust the transportation plan according to the urgency and destination of the goods, and adopt multimodal transport methods, such as air transport combined with sea and land transport, to ensure that the goods can be delivered on time.

Alternative routes: We will plan alternative routes in advance to avoid French airspace affected by the strike and choose other safe and efficient routes for cargo transportation.

Transit plan: For some areas that are severely affected by the strike, we will consider transferring the goods to airports in other countries or regions, and then make subsequent transportation arrangements.

Strengthen communication and coordination

We will maintain close communication with relevant departments such as airlines, airports, customs, etc., keep abreast of the adjustments and changes in transportation policies, and strive to obtain priority transportation opportunities for your goods.

At the same time, we will also keep in close contact with you, provide you with timely feedback on the progress of the transportation of the goods, answer your questions, and let you know the dynamics of the goods at any time.

Provide value-added services

Cargo insurance: In order to reduce the risk of goods during transportation, we recommend that you purchase transportation insurance for your goods. We will provide you with professional insurance consulting services to help you choose the most suitable insurance plan.

Warehousing service: If your goods cannot be delivered to the destination in time due to a strike, we can provide you with temporary warehousing services to ensure the safety and integrity of the goods.

Reasons for choosing Chinadivision

Rich experience

Chinadivision has many years of experience in the field of international logistics, is familiar with the response process of various emergencies, and can provide you with professional and efficient logistics solutions.

Extensive network

We have established long-term and stable cooperative relations with many airlines, freight forwarders, customs, etc. around the world. We have a wide range of logistics networks and resources and can provide you with a variety of transportation options.

High-quality service

We always focus on customers and pay attention to service quality and customer experience. Our professional team will provide you with a full range of one-stop logistics services, so that you have no worries.

In this French air traffic control strike, Chinadivision will go all out and take all necessary measures to ensure that your goods can be delivered to the destination safely and on time. You can trust us to transport your goods. We will escort your logistics and transportation with professional services and responsible attitude.

Whether you are a cross-border e-commerce seller, a B2B export enterprise, or a crowdfunding project initiator, Chinadivision can provide you with stable, efficient, and scalable order fulfillment services to help you move forward steadily in an uncertain global logistics environment.

FAQ

Will it affect my fulfillment time on platforms such as Amazon and Shopify?

Using Chinadivision's multi-platform order synchronization system, you can unify the management of fulfillment strategies to avoid damage to account performance due to platform delays.

Do I need to prepare inventory in advance?

Yes. It is recommended to pre-position inventory to local warehouses in Europe in advance, or use Chinadivision's smart warehouse service to improve fulfillment flexibility.