BRITS heading to Italy this week have been warned to expect chaos ahead of a huge country-wide strike.
A nationwide general strike will affect air, rail and public transport services on March 8.
This marks the third significant strike to impact Italian airspace in 2025, with previous walkouts taking place in January and February.
The strike action is being backed by three Italian unions and significant disruption is expected.
Up to 70 direct flights from the UK could be disrupted as a result, impacting as many as 11,000 passengers.
The UK airlines that could be affected include British Airways, easyJet and Ryanair.
Each airline has more than 15 direct flights to key destinations across Italy, such as Milan, Venice, Rome, Naples and Florence.
Sun Online Travel have contacted British Airways, easyJet and Ryanair for comment.
Key routes that could be impacted include services between London and Rome, London and Milan, Manchester and Rome, and Edinburgh and Milan.
Anton Radchenko, Aviation expert & founder of AirAdvisor said: “Four strikes in the first three months of 2025, is not a favourable sign for the Italian aviation industry.
“EU has one of the strongest laws protecting air passenger rights, but frequent disruptions make it a mess for passengers.”
According to the technical regulation authority ENAC, flights operating between 7am to 10am and 6pm to 9pm shouldn’t be affected by the strike action because they are protected time slots.
[bc_video account_id=”5067014667001″ application_id=”” aspect_ratio=”16:9″ autoplay=”” caption=”Why it’s important to buy travel insurance when booking a holiday” embed=”in-page” experience_id=”” height=”100%” language_detection=”” max_height=”360px” max_width=”640px” min_width=”0px” mute=”” padding_top=”56%” picture_in_picture=”” player_id=”default” playlist_id=”” playsinline=”” sizing=”responsive” video_id=”6350205313112″ video_ids=”” width=”640px”]Italian baggage handlers will stage a 24-hour walkout on March 16.
Techno Sky, the company responsible for operating and maintaining air traffic control systems, will hold a separate four-hour strike.
Air traffic control systems will be impacted from 12pm to 4pm on March 16.
Strike action on March 16 could disrupt baggage handling, check-in services and flight schedules.
Radchenko urges passengers to be flexible with their travel plans, if possible.
[authenticated-scripts src=”%3Cscript%20class%3D%22palin-poll%22%20src%3D%22https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thesun.co.uk%2Fpollingwidgets%2Fv3%2Fwidget.js%3Fquestion_id%3D108769%26game%3Dpolling%22%3E%3C%2Fscript%3E” type=”embedded” width=”100″ /]He also warns travellers against boarding connecting flights in Italy because they’re also at risk of disruption.
Air travel in Italy should be back under control by March 20, with fewer flights facing disruption.
Italian rail services also face disruption in March, with a 12-hour strike taking place on March 7 as well as additional strike action on March 18 and 19.
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