Travel question: Will planned strike affect my connection to Orkney?

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Flights to the island from Inverness face disruption from air-traffic controllers striking

Q I am booked to fly to Inverness on easyJet on 26 April, which is the same day as a planned strike by air-traffic controllers. I was booked to connect to Orkney on Loganair on the same day. In early March Loganair informed us of the risk of the strike action, closed all their flights into and out of Inverness to new bookings and offered all booked passengers free transfers to other flights.

Anne E

A As you know, air-traffic controllers who belong to the Prospect union and work for Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd (HIAL) are involved in a pay dispute. They have voted overwhelmingly in favour of striking: 88 per cent in favour, with 86 per cent voting, meaning more than three-quarters in total.

The air-traffic controllers have begun a work-to-rule and an overtime ban, which is already causing disruption, with a dozen Loganair flights cancelled so far this week. They have announced a strike on Friday 26 April. The two sides are due to talk at Acas on Tuesday, but at present HIAL warns: “To allow our passengers to plan, we are progressing on the assumption that the strike action will go ahead.” Inverness airport is set to close, along with Benbecula, Dundee, Kirkwall (Orkney), Stornoway and Sumburgh (Shetland). Cover for emergency incidents will be maintained.

As a result of the strike threat, easyJet has stopped selling seats in and out of Inverness that day; British Airways has not. When strikes are threatened in aviation, it is perfectly normal for airlines to decline requests for free transfers away from the affected date and/or to continue selling seats. Industrial action is called frequently by many groups of aviation workers, and in my experience planned strikes are often called off or, when they do take place, cause only limited disruption. Loganair, which will be far more affected than any other carrier, has decided to take preemptive action. But because you have decided to book separate tickets – one from Bristol to Inverness and another onwards to Orkney – this leaves you in a difficult position.

At this stage all I can suggest is that you wait to see what happens at the talks. If the industrial action is called off, I imagine Loganair will reinstate its flights (Friday normally being the busiest day of the week) and you will be able to switch back to your original departure. But if the strike is set to go ahead, then easyJet will at some point offer you the chance to transfer to alternative flights. It remains to be seen if the options work with your travel plans.

I agree it is a frustrating, messy and potentially expensive situation, but I am afraid that any journey where two elements are booked separately is open to such problems.

Every day our travel correspondent Simon Calder tackles a reader’s question. Just email yours to s@hols.tv or tweet @simoncalder