Ryanair is calling for an urgent reform of the European Air Traffic Control (ATC) system, after a new failure in the equipment of the Athens Control Center on Wednesday, August 20, which caused delays to flights to and from Greece. Specifically, the Irish airline announced that 12 of its own routes were affected, with more than 2,000 passengers suffering inconvenience.
According to data released by Ryanair, from January 1 to August 20, 2025, more than 5,000 of its flights and 900,000 passengers have suffered “unfair delays” due to “mismanagement” and staff shortages in Greek ATC, placing Greece in the 5th worst position among European Air Traffic Services.
The company accuses the European Commission and its president, Ursula von der Leyen (whom it mockingly calls “von Derlayed-Again”), of allowing such problems to recur, despite its commitments to boost competitiveness and efficiency in Europe.
In a statement, a Ryanair spokesperson said:
“It is unacceptable that passengers continue to suffer from ATC disruptions due to repeated staff shortages across Europe and – today – due to yet another disruption, this time in Athens, which delayed 12 of our flights and over 2,000 passengers. When will von “Derlayed-Again” and the European Commission finally take action to reform ATC and protect passengers?”
Ryanair is also calling on passengers affected by the delays to visit the online platform “Air Traffic Control Ruined Your Flight”, in order to – as it says – send a letter of protest to the relevant transport ministers and support the pressure for changes to European air traffic control.
The company’s intervention brings to the fore the chronic weaknesses of the traffic control system in Europe, with airlines and passengers demanding solutions to a problem that causes significant delays and high financial costs to the industry.
