Good morning, I have just read this article: www.easytravelreport.com/European-air-traffic-control-strike.html As I understand the french ATC will be on strike over the next days. Right now I am in La Rochelle and have planned to stay 1-2 more days. But I am not sure if I will be able to leave La Rochelle when ATC is striking. Has anyone experiences with such a situation ? Will I be able to leave the CTR La Rochelle via VFR as I suppose IFR will not work ? Thanks in advance Detlev
As they will be on strike, the airspace should go back to Class G. So you should be able to free to come and go.
Check airport NOTAMs and/or airport ops if in doubt.
Worst case the tower is staffed but undermanned so you may have a much delayed departure time.
They might set your airplane on fire though, very peculiar strike culture in France...
Thanks fuzzy, will check. Thanks achimba, in that case I will bring some seafood for barbecue and join the party regards Detlev
As they will be on strike, the airspace should go back to Class G. So you should be able to free to come and go.
I would absolutely not rely on that.
I had this situation in Greece 2 years ago and the airport (Kithira LGKC) was simply shut. And that is not an ATC airport... it is AFIS.
I would expect any airport in CAS to be shut. But it's worth asking... France is more liberal with these things.
Actually physically getting out is a different thing, and it is something a number of pilots have looked at in connection with airport bankrupcies which are hardly unknown in the UK, but you need to plan on not visiting that airport, or that country, again for a while 
I had advice from a UK aviation lawyer that there is nothing illegal in simply flying out after the (H24 Class G in this case) airport closing time, provided certain dodgy things are avoided (e.g. departing in darkness without runway lights). Any offence committed is actionable by the landowner and he can sue for economic loss only, generally, etc, etc.
Thank you Peter
Having lived in France for several years, in general French strikes don't really shut things down, but rather slow them down. Meaning, where there would normally be, say, three guys in the tower, there'll only be one, there may be nobody in the Met office, etc. Why don't you have a friendly word with them, as you are already there?
Thanks 172driver, will do so, after I have enjoyed more oysters and seafood here detlev
The strike is over now. Strikers represented almost 100% of staff, according to the DGAC. Eventually the strike planned to last 3 days was reduced to one day only because the gouvernement promised to plea in Brussels.
Flying VFR is the best way to avoid troubles in such a case. i did not heard of any closed airport. As fuzzy said, unmanned CTR and TMA simply turned into G airspace.
Thanks TThierry, actually we have left La Rochelle yesterday VFR. It was another way of learning. I have checked on the french ..sia.civil.gouv..page if the military areas are active (internet says all NOT active). Than leaving La Rochelle we received "changed to Pointiers info...", but there was only a recorded message running "..strike, in case of emergency contact..", so I just tried other Info frequencies around and found an active one, telling me following military area is active, have to descend under 3000 feet..., next Info told me, not active, climbing 8500 feet is okay.... So by contacting on every available frequency on the map we crossed france to Freiburg. Maybe in 5 years I will look back and call me a halfwit, but we got through it, thanks to a few french controllers working (GREAT thanks to them) and some chuzpe. regards detlev
