Leeds Bradford Airport strike, including air traffic control staff
Starts 16 Oct 2026 · Checked 11 Oct 2026, 17:00 UTC
About 130 Unite members at Leeds Bradford Airport, including air traffic control, customer experience, security and cleaning staff, will strike from 16 to 18 October over pay. Unite warns of a shutdown, but the airport says it expects near-normal operations. No airlines have been named as affected.
What travellers should do
Check flight status before heading to the airport and allow extra time for security.
Your rights if your flight is affected
- Cancelled flight: you can usually choose a full refund or a new flight, even when the cancellation isn't the airline's fault. Ask for a refund to your original payment, not just a voucher.
- Flights departing the EU or UK, or flown by an EU or UK airline into them: on top of a refund you may be owed €250–€600 (or £220–£520) for a cancellation with less than 14 days' notice, or a delay of 3 hours or more on arrival.
- No compensation is due for extraordinary circumstances such as severe weather, security threats, airport or airspace closures and air traffic control strikes. Strikes by the airline's own staff usually do count.
- While you wait, airlines covered by EU and UK rules must provide meals and, if needed, a hotel. Keep receipts for anything you pay yourself.
Airports affected
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