The invoked reason is false: Customers angry with Volotea canceling dozens of flights from France due to geopolitical instability in the Middle East

Several weeks before their holidays, many French people who had bought a ticket with the low-cost airline find themselves without a solution. And the justifications don’t go down well.

The announcement is abrupt and especially late. In Brittany, Normandy, the North, in Charente-Maritime… Hundreds of people who were supposed to travel with Volotea for Easter holidays all experienced a major letdown: their flight is simply and totally canceled just a few weeks before their departure. Several destinations like Corsica, Italy or Spain are affected. Just from Caen alone, 11 flights to Ajaccio are canceled, the same from Brest.

With its clients, the Spanish low-cost airline justifies itself by highlighting “the persistent geopolitical instability in the Middle East, we have been forced to make limited adjustments to our flight schedule for the months of April and May. These adjustments are necessary to ensure the stability of our short-term operations and to maintain a reliable service, while minimizing disruptions as much as possible.”

However, Volotea only serves Europe and explanations may need to be sought on the side of the surge in the cost of kerosene, the price of which has doubled in recent weeks. Some airlines were covered (by purchasing fuel in advance), others increase their fares, while others cancel flights.

“On us, a fait accompli, je leur reproche cette faççon de faire. Et le motif invoqué est faux, Volotea ne desservant que l’Europe… N’est-ce pas plutôt lié au coût du carburant?”, questions Alain, a resident of Lille who was supposed to go to Corsica in April, interviewed by Actu Lille.

“By looking into it a bit, I realized that other companies had anticipated this increase in fuel costs, but Volotea did nothing,” rages Frédéric to La Liberté, a Norman who was also supposed to go to the island of Beauty.

The late announcement of these cancellations puts its clients in delicate situations. “I am currently negotiating with my hotelier to postpone my reservation by a year. He confirmed to me that I was not the only one in this situation. Down there, tourism professionals are very upset with these cancellations that they are experiencing firsthand,” explains Frédéric.

No compensation

Interrogated by BFM Business, Volotea slightly evolved its communication by finally mentioning the price of kerosene.

“For operational reasons related to the geopolitical instability resulting from the conflict in the Middle East and the very significant short-term increase in the price of fuel, program adjustments were necessary, resulting in the cancellation of some flights. Faced with this exceptional situation, we analyzed our entire network to identify the connections to adjust, taking into account multiple operational factors and evaluating the overall impact on the connectivity of our network. These adjustments are necessary to guarantee operational stability and continue to offer a solid service, while minimizing the impact for as long as the conflict lasts.”

“Our teams proactively and in advance contact the passengers concerned so that they can reorganize their travel plans and inform them of the available options, including modifying their flights at no extra cost or requesting a full refund. We sincerely regret any inconvenience that this situation may cause and remain committed to providing a reliable service and the best possible travel experience for our passengers,” the company continues.

While the company assures that it will refund the canceled flights, passengers should not count on any compensation. “If passengers are informed more than 14 days before the flight, the airline has the possibility to modify tickets without any compensation being due to passengers,” indicates Anaïs Escudié, founder of the website Retardvol.fr.