A strike by Norwegian air traffic controllers is set to close Oslo Airport Gardermoen to all air traffic for five hours on Sunday morning, from 06:30 to 11:30, unless the conflict is resolved.
DR reports that the state-owned airport operator Avinor has warned of the five-hour shutdown on Sunday, August 23. The closure will take effect if there are no changes in the air traffic controller strike now underway in Norway.
The strike is already affecting traffic on Saturday. According to DR, 14 SAS flights have been canceled so far, including two on the route between Copenhagen and Oslo. The canceled departures are an 08:00 flight from Oslo to Copenhagen and a 09:55 flight from Copenhagen to Oslo, per the websites of Avinor and Copenhagen Airport.
Avinor communications chief Monica Fasting told NRK that the final status will not be known until the day is over. She said she is fairly certain the number of cancellations could rise during Saturday.
The walkout began on Friday, August 21, after negotiations between the air traffic controllers’ union Norsk Flygelederforening and the employers’ organization Spekter collapsed. Twelve air traffic controllers went on strike as a result, DR reports.
Twelve controllers out at two airports
The Norwegian labor outlet FriFagbevegelse reports that the 12 controllers work at Gardermoen and Bergen Flesland. The strike started Friday at 11:00, and the outlet notes that NFF has plans to potentially expand the action with more controllers later.
According to a press release from Avinor, the notified strike covers Flesland, Gardermoen, the approach control for Gardermoen and the area control for western Norway. The dispute is with Spekter and Avinor Flysikring, the company responsible for Norwegian air navigation services.
Avinor’s own strike information page states that Gardermoen will be closed to traffic between 06:30 and 11:30 on Sunday. The operator warns of major delays, cancellations and knock-on effects throughout the day, with consequences felt at airports across Norway.
The Swedish newswire Dagens Nyheter reports that the airport may be completely closed to air traffic for the five hours from 06:30 on Sunday. The outlet notes that the strike broke out on Friday after mediators failed to find a solution.
Why the closure falls on Sunday
The Sunday shutdown follows a timetable Avinor published before the walkout began. In a planning note dated August 17, the operator said Gardermoen would be closed from 06:30 to 11:30 on August 23 if a strike went ahead.
Avinor stated in the same note that the weekend would bring large delays, cancellations and follow-on effects nationwide. All sources treat the closure as contingent on the strike still being in effect Sunday morning.
